The Lost Chronicles of Hyrule
by EyesOfEnigma
Summary: When Hyrule is reduced to a small colony and their homeland is captured by anarchist bandits, they roam abandoned forests and plains until a generation of promise returns to claim the ancient power of their ancestors.
1. Chapter 1

_Hello, Hello. You're expecting something, I'm sure, that is different than what you're going to discover._

 _Sticking to the respectful canon here. No crossovers. I'm a simple person. This is just going to be a little short story about a reincarnation of Link, Zelda and co. that Hyrule forgot to record in their history. Where is it on the timeline? Try to figure it out ;)_

 _Preteen + for description of violence._

 _Love and stuff,_

 _Eyes of Enigma_

The Lost Chronicles of Hyrule

Chapter I

The fresh wet snow muffled the quickened footsteps down a crystalline forest ravine. Puffs of hot breath in cold air lingered around the focused gazes and racing hearts of a mass of men, three hundred or more, clutching weapons in anticipation. Most wielded blades or spears, while a couple dozen were skilled archers. They all dressed in simple and plain garb, pieces of thick leather and plates of steel only decorated with a simple crest.

A woman past her prime but twice as strong as any man, dressed in ornate hues of deep blue and vibrant accents of orange, gave a signal for the troops to organize themselves at the top of the opposite edge of the ravine. They obeyed her immediately, the action second nature to them. This woman watched them with a scrutinising eye, and with her bravery of being left out in the open on lower ground, one would assume that she led them. Yet she was only second-in-command.

It was the wisdom of their royal that was at the front of every battle. Her cunning and knowledge was only matched by her ferocious ability on the battlefield. She didn't watch her soldiers as the adviser did, but instead her head was turned towards the forest where their enemies were surely going to emerge. Her eyes of water ran over every black-barked tree, her dark hood pulled against the chill.

Her nose stung from the pungent but faint odour of smoke, and she clutched her hand-crafted bow, one end decorated with serrated daggers. The soldiers kept their eyes on their princess, just a year from being crowned, waiting for her next order. She too was brightly dressed in a royal violet and fine brown leather, quiver on her right hip, tunic draping in flaps over her thick winter trousers, and the delicate design of their crest on the front of her hood.

"Zelda," muttered the older woman, hand on her sword hilt with expectation.

"I know," came the smooth tone of the princess. She smiled at the familiar, tattooed face of her oldest friend and protector. "May the goddesses bless our battle, Impa."

"May the goddesses bless," she repeated respectfully.

Zelda whipped her head towards her troops and lifted her bow triumphantly to bring them to attention. "With the power of Din!" she cried out to them, and they turned it back to her loudly. "With the wisdom of Nayru! With the courage of Farore!" They shouted the last part with her, beating their weapons against their shields and armour with vigour and passion.

The princess and her captain sprinted up the ravine to clatter swords and bows with their soldiers in encouragement, then took up their own positions among the ranks. Zelda made the centre of the archers, while Impa in front of her was with the other swordsmen. She gave the deep throated command for the archers to be at the ready and those with spears positioned to strike anyone who dared come close to their lines.

It was not long until their enemy was in sight over the opposite ledge. Dressed in warm furs and metal plates, painted in woad and wielding short blades, their numbers exceeded those of Hyrule by two hundred at least. Yet the soldiers were far from worried. Zelda gave a nod to half their ranks. She had planned for this carefully. According to her orders, they made it appear as though they were abandoning in fear.

"Wait for me," Zelda muttered to the last of them. "Hold ranks!" she cried loudly, pretending to be frustrated and flustered. The enemy men visibly grinned with delight. "Archers, ready! Wait for them to descend."

Her eyes turned to ice as she watched the throng of enemy men tumble down the ravine, entering her carefully calculated death trap. She drew an arrow with strong and slender fingers, setting it to the bowstring slowly and cautiously. Taking aim, she sat the example for her men. "Fire," she commanded calmly, loosing her arrow. When the sharp projectile found its way to an eye socket, it opened the air to a rainstorm of its companions.

The first tide of enemies fell, only to be stepped over by their comrades, unmoving and constant in their bloodthirst. As the first rank of archers and Zelda reloaded, the second row loosed. A few enemies managed to make it past, but most were struck down with the spears. One tossed a small knife into the neck of a Hyrulian who impaled him simultaneously, their bodies slipped down the slope and staining the snow as they went. The line was closed in the absence.

Zelda had let five rounds of arrows, never missing, when she had finally seen the last of the enemies advance into battle. She placed her hand on Impa's shoulder to let her know that the plan was well on its way. Impa grunted begrudgingly since she was ordered to stay, making Zelda smirk slightly in spite of the bleak and morbid circumstances.

She retreated, a purple blur between the trees. Jogging far enough away so the snow reduced the noises of war, she could finally think straight. Her senses were alert for danger, trained over many harsh years of her people's banishment from their own homeland. Every battle was another step towards reclaiming what was theirs. I am a descendant of the goddess Hylia, she told herself. I am the protector of Wisdom. I will lead my people to victory.

Zelda made sure to make a wide circle around the activity until she spotted her men crouching in wait for her. "Run into any trouble?" she asked them as she halted, turning up snow at her boots.

"There were a few scouts, but they won't be giving any messages," a soldier told her. He was one of her most experienced fighters.

Zelda nodded quickly. "Good. Let's move," she said, her tone of kind authority. "We haven't got all day." She sped up ahead of them, her steps long and light, trailed closely by her friends and mentors. Her hand absent-mindedly wandered to her shoulder strap and tightened her leather armour. It would slow down an arrow on the way to a vital organ significantly, but it would do little for a powerful blow of a blade. She was no novice in combat, but she still worried for the day that fatigue or arrogance would cost her flesh.

The princess led her party to flank the enemy at the opposite higher ground. It was a stupidly easy strategy, but then again, it was an unexpected conflict. The bandits were always careless when doing this without warning. She doubted that they even had a decent chain of command.

With a sandwich of Hyrulians crushing bandits between them, many of the enemies scattered in fear or were slain. The cries of the injured were sharp and remembered, and as Zelda commanded a descent on both sides to finish them off, many fled to the edges. The remaining archers picked off a few, and some of the more fearless enemies put up a fight.

Zelda avoided the steel blade that cut the air by her ear and smoothly dispatched her attacker with the swift movement of the dagger end of her bow. Seeing the thinness of enemies, she glanced up at her men. "Go in groups of four and comb the woods. Make sure to chase them out or otherwise. I want clean kills, and bring their bodies back."

They shouted their agreement and obeyed her instructions. The remaining two stayed with Impa and the princess. The girl in purple padded around the corpses of allies and opposers.

"How many did we lose?" she asked, her heart still racing from the adrenalin. Her muscles were beginning to ache, her feet were growing cold, and she noticed the shallow wound on her shoulder. It wasn't bleeding too much.

"I guess fifty," Impa replied, resting her broadsword into the ground, her piercing eyes scanned the white and red.

Zelda discovered a young bandit with a fractured arrow in his back. Its feathers matched those of her quiver. The head had missed his heart, but it most likely punctured his lung and would certainly prove fatal. He coughed blood and writhed, his eyes rolling back as it became increasingly difficult to breathe. She was filled with painful compassion, kneeling down to look at him. He calmed slightly as she pulled her hood away and exposed her white-blonde head, her long delicate ears, the mark of a Hyrulian, making his eyes grow wide.

She was kind and soft-featured as the blades of her bow met his throat. "The end of your suffering," she whispered to him. "May the goddesses welcome you with open arms."

Zelda's ears twitched at the sound of Impa's quiet grunt of disapproval. She did not believe in mercy towards fallen enemies. The princess simply ignored her, instead turning to the two soldiers. "Look for our wounded. Kill any living fallen bandits. When the others return, strip the corpses of useful materials and give proper burials to everyone. We will return to the tents by sundown.

The clap of an arrow rapidly meeting the ground by Zelda's feet made her jump back, Impa drawing her sword and frantically guarding. "Where was that from?" the older woman demanded loudly, but she was interrupted by the crunching noise of snow underfoot as Zelda pursued the invisible archer. Impa cried out for her to stop, but she was already out of sight and weaving between the trees.

She chased the shadow of a figure with such hot determination that she didn't even know she had, or did she know why she felt so insistent on taking this person down. It wasn't out of self preservation or anger or even fear. All she knew was that she had to. Perhaps it was to make sure he didn't deliver a message; that must've been it.

A swift arrow ceased his running. Zelda slowed to a stop at his body, huffing madly and rubbing her now aching thighs. It was a clean kill: he died instantly. The soft murmur of a creek calmed her mind for a moment before she was alerted by the distinct sound of a shoe slipping on wet rocks. She ducked behind a tree to observe the young man struggling in the water.

He was no older than her; a youthful face set with the most vibrant blue eyes contorted in the pain of a badly sprained ankle. He was clouded with fear and attempting to run from all the commotion, but there was no way he was walking on that foot. His worn boots were falling apart and he wore a tunic and trousers that were faded and thin enough to rip on a tree branch. Dusty blond hair, unkempt and a bit long, was clinging to drying cuts and scrapes on his face.

Zelda pulled herself out from behind the tree when she saw his pointed ears. How did one of my people end up like this? she wondered. She stared at him, and he at her, for a bewildering minute. A feeling of familiarity and fondness inexplicably grew in her. She moved slowly to plant herself securely by the rocks of the creek, stretching out her hand to him.

When he reached out to accept it, the sleeve of his tunic pulled back to reveal old and fresh scars of being bound. The bandits had been holding him for a very long time, Zelda concluded.

She snatched his hand and effortlessly swung his arm around her shoulders to support his weight. "Let's get you home. There is no need to fear anymore."

His voice was frail and exhausted. "Thank you."


	2. Chapter 2

The Lost Chronicles of Hyrule

Chapter II

"He may be Hyrulian, but that does not mean that he is on our side," Impa huffed.

Zelda clenched her jaw as the apprentice medicine woman tied off the last stitch in her shoulder and began dabbing it with alcohol. "He is one of my people. I was not about to leave him there to freeze to death."

The older woman crossed her arms and paced around the large decorated tent that acted as a substitute royal court room. "So now what do we do with him?"

The princess nodded and smiled as the healer excused herself after binding the injury. She was dressed plainly and warmly, her now clean curls braided back and her eyes as sharp and clear as newly frosted ice. From her elegant ears dangled two sapphire drops. Zelda folded her hands regally, just as she was taught, establishing a comfortable presence in the room. "What do you suggest, Impa?" she asked her silver-haired adviser.

The amber eyes flickered to her princess. "Send him on his way. Give him enough to find wherever he wants to go, and that'll be the end of it."

"What makes you bear this opinion?"

"He could be a spy!" Impa explained.

"And if he isn't?" Zelda challenged her.

Impa shrugged. "Then his blood isn't on our hands."

Zelda pulled her mouth to the side in thought and disapproval. "A spy does not have a decade worth of scars on their wrists."

"Prisoners can easily be assimilated," Impa replied gravely.

The young woman fell silent for some time. They had fed this boy, treated his wounds, clothed him, and let him rest. She wondered how he was feeling and what he thought about this world that he re-entered. Was he a damaged soul or did he persevere with complete morals and a strong spirit? She favoured the latter. No, she knew it. I should tell her, she decided.

"Recall the tales you told me," Zelda began, her head lifted a bit higher as she once again captured Impa's attention. "Of the ones before me who saved our people countless times." Impa nodded in affirmation. "You spoke of the green-clad hero, the spirit that was bound to my own."

Impa's face slacked with understanding. "Are you quite sure?" she exclaimed.

Zelda nodded slowly, closing her eyes as if she was tired. "I have yet to prove it, but that will be resolved soon enough. With the gifts of Nayru and Farore now together, we can recover the Triforce of Power before evil finds it, returning Hyrule to its former glory."

"You have not yet found the bearer of Power," Impa reminded her.

"I have studied the heirloom extensively. I believe that the vessel is hidden with it in the shrine to the north," Zelda returned. "You understand that the party will be small. I will only take him and the twins."

"The twins cannot protect you like I can," Impa retorted.

Zelda let her hand fall to the arm of her chair, her expression firm. "The twins are invaluable on a journey across nature's dangers. Safety will come from the hero and myself."

Impa scoffed. "He can't even fight, I bet."

The princess lifted herself out of her seat and walked smoothly past her adviser with complete confidence on her way out. "Then he will be trained."

It was a conveniently short walk from the royal tent to the complex that was the medicine tent. Comely fires and busy citizens performed daily and grueling tasks, but still had a smile and a wave for their leader. Simply peeling back the front flap of the main medicine room produced the complete opposite effect.

"If I feel one more draft coming into this place, the person responsible will discover how little of a healer I can be," hissed the raspy tone of the head medicine woman.

Zelda slipped in and grinned, already very familiar with the heavy atmosphere of herbs and concoctions. The tent was unbelievably warm from the large fire in the centre of the room, releasing through a shaft in the ceiling and surrounded by boxes and shelves of odd things.

"Shall I make you forge for your own kindling, you old crow?" Zelda teased, rounding the fire to come into sight. A silver-haired woman, far older than anyone else and bundled in a mountain of shawls and furs turned around in surprise and smiled in delight, her wrinkles and Sheikah tattoos bending with the expression.

"Oh!" she cried long and loud, giving the princess a suffocating hug and holding her out armlength to look at her in full. "I heard how well your battle went! And barely a scratch on you, you lucky goose. You better marry yourself off before you get something serious. That pretty face won't last forever!"

Zelda blushed as the old spinster returned to grinding all sorts of aromatic things, humming to herself old songs as her professional hands worked effortlessly. "What can I do for you, my dear? Did my apprentice treat you properly?"

"Almost as well as her teacher," Zelda replied quickly, bouncing in her spot slightly with anticipation. "I'm here to see how out guest is doing."

She was met with a sly smile. "I don't blame you. I wish someone like him came around during my prime!"

Zelda placed her hand on her hips and shot the crone a look. "That's not what I meant, Lileh! And you know it."

Lileh laughed musically. "I gave him a sleeping draft to make him rest. He was quite agitated after I healed him, saying that he had to see you for something important."

"Me?" Zelda asked.

"Of course. You're the one who rescued him, are you not?"

"In a manner of speaking," the young woman replied. "It is rather a coincidence, because I must speak with him on an urgent matter."

"The heirloom?" Lileh asked.

The princess nodded. "Insightful, as always. Yes, he is almost certainly the key to restoring our kingdom. The script on the heirloom specifically states that Wisdom and Courage must reach their full potential in their respective shrines to locate Power."

"I will prepare medicine for you journey," Lileh returned gravely.

"I will bring the twins, as well. And I have yet to see if I need to train him," Zelda added, lost a bit in thought.

"He was hardly idle in his prison," Lileh told her, alerting her attention yet again. "His body is far too strong for someone who was left to rot in a cell. Those barbarians most likely made him fight for entertainment."

The princess cast her eyes to the ground pensively in disgust. Poor soul, she thought. Perhaps he is far too scarred to be the hero after all.

"May I see him?" she requested.

Lileh shook her head. "He's still asleep. Don't disturb –"

"I'm right here," came a voice near the guest bedroom part of the tent. The flap was peeled back to reveal the boy Zelda had saved from the creek, now clean and well-dressed; his hair cut smartly, pulled back in a short tail and his bangs falling around focused, serious blue eyes. With his health and colour came also strength in spirit, and Zelda felt her own shake with recognition.

As he stepped towards her, she forced herself to return to her dignified royal persona, but she couldn't ignore the one lingering thought. How many past lives have we shared? she wondered. They stood squarely in front of each other, blinking and curious, albeit cautious.

"I wanted to thank you again," he told her. "My Hyrulian name is Link, first and only son of Emmerich and Alicia."

Zelda took a breath in through her nose. "I am Zelda, Sovereign Princess of Hyrule."

He bowed respectfully to her. "I wish to return to your kingdom as a contributing citizen. I will do anything you ask of me."

"We appreciate any help," Zelda replied. "However, my adviser is concerned about where your loyalties lie."

His features deepened a bit. "When I was captured by the bandits in a raid, I was too young to understand the promise I made to my mother: that I would dedicate my life to Hyrule, no matter the price."

Zelda's eyebrows rose progressively. "I also made a promise to my mother," she said. "That I would protect my people with my life, and that I would bring them back to their true home." When Link didn't respond, his gaze unmoving, she relaxed slightly. "Come with me," she commanded, turning on her heel to exit the tent. He followed behind her quickly, leaving a calm and amused Lileh.

Impa was nowhere to be found in the royal tent, which made it much easier for Zelda to lead her companion behind the chair she was sitting in not fifteen minutes ago to her quarters. It was neat, tidy, and there were precious objects, maps, and books packed away with organization. Above her bed in the far corner was a man's breastplate and a war shield, both with Hyrule's crest. There was a spot for a sword, but none was visible.

Link stopped a few steps from the entrance to look around the room, soaking it all in. While he was preoccupied, Zelda reached behind the books to pull out a painted wooden rod, about the size of a scroll, etched with ancient writing.

"This object has been passed down the royal family for generations," she said, holding it up to get his attention. "It describes what must be done to bring Hyrule back to her homeland. But it's only part of the information. It assumes that the reader has heard the legends of our people."

Link said nothing, listening carefully to her every word.

"Do you remember the stories from your childhood? The tales of dark times, and how it was extinguished by the reincarnated spirits of the goddess Hylia and the green-clad warrior. They were the bearers of Nayru and Farore's gifts, Wisdom and Courage. Wisdom was always a royal, and the hero a commoner. Their souls were eternally bound to each other because of their great love for their people. Power, the gift of Din, has been hidden, and this artifact is the key to finding it before evil does. With the complete Triforce, Hyrule can be restored."

Link nodded. "I will do whatever I can to help you."

She smiled at him sweetly, surprising him. "I know you will." She clenched her right fist and laid it across her chest, closing her eyes to focus her energy. A faint glow seeped through the skin on the back of her hand to reveal a gold triangle formed from three, one filled with light and the others empty. As if in response, the same happened to Link's left hand, flickering slightly, like it just woke up from a long dream.

He glanced at her, and then his own hand, his eyes wide. She finally regarded him, causing the marks to fade, and smiled again, this time more sadly.

"I would say that we have a lot of catching up to do," she said to him quietly, "but I don't remember any of it. Yet I knew who you were as soon as I saw you."

He blinked, cast his gaze to the floor, and let out a breath.

§ § §

Tsarien and Viven had heard from Lileh after delivering herbs that Zelda planned on bringing them on some adventure. They were, of course, ecstatic to do so. She seemed to be the only one who thought they were useful for anything other than running errands. As neither Hyrulian nor Sheikah, they were truly the odd ones out. Their parents were just ordinary folk in the countryside, killed off like so many by bandits. It was a blessing for Impa to take pity on the two infants and bring them up within the Sheikah Tribe. She thought they would make good friends with the young princess, orphaned herself, only to discover how truly strange they were.

At the surface, they seemed like normal identical twins – brown hair, freckles, green eyes – but as they grew, their oddities began to stand out. Their ears were round instead of long and pointed like Hyrulians, and their hair was far from silver or white as the Sheikahs had. Moreover, no one could tell that they were in fact fraternal twins, but looked almost identical anyways.

The twins' senses were sharper than any other's; they could speak with animals and even turn into brown foxes. They were told it was an ancient type of magic, one forgotten by craft and could only be learned naturally. Lileh and Zelda were the only ones who cared to discover that they were Druids, but it didn't help anyone else feel at ease. Even with their talents, they were still just two more children, doing their best to be useful.

"Our laundry-washing days are over," Tsarien sighed with delight, pulling on his dark blue cloak-like tunic, spraying his sloppy hair in all directions. Viven swung her legs under her as she sat on her bed, wearing the same tunic, watching her brother pull his hair back into a tail. Her hair was the same length, just below the shoulders and very thin, but in a braid.

"That was just a rumor. Zelda is four years older than us. She won't be interested in dragging kids along. It sounded too important for that," she reminded him.

"In some of the legends of the hero, he was even younger than us when he single-handedly saved Hyrule!" Tsarien exclaimed.

"We aren't the hero . . ." Viven muttered.

Tsarien frowned at her. "But there's two of us! And we'll have Zelda."

Viven perked up her head. "I hear someone coming."

They waited, listening intensely for the approaching person to reveal themselves.

"You know it's me, so let me in," Zelda laughed outside the tent, her shadow crossing its arms. The twins grinned at each other. They did know it was her long before she spoke. She always smelled like the wind after a rainy day, and her gait was smooth, strong, and refined.

The princess ducked her head in, the blonde wisps of curls that were not restrained by her braid dancing in front of her ears. Her eyes were bright with happiness as she took a seat on the matted ground. The twins knew that they offered her a more dignified seat, she would refuse.

"Alright," she said. "Your suffering is over. I told Lileh not to disclose that. Yes, I'm taking you with me." Tsarien gave Viven a haughty look. "I need your skills to save Hyrule."

"To fulfill the prophecy on the scroll?" Tsarien asked excitedly.

Zelda nodded.

"But we need the hero," Viven pointed out. "Did you find him?"

"At our last battle. A chance encounter. I don't think it was truly chance, though," Zelda returned.

"It's fate," Viven said. "Your spirits are bound. There's no way you couldn't meet."

"Maybe so," Zelda admitted. "We will set out in a few days. Pack anything you need for a long journey, alright? And bring your daggers with you. They may come in handy at any point. I'm trusting you to be my best eyes and ears."

They nodded vigourously and simultaneously. "You can count on us," they said together, their green eyes in union with determination.

"I want you on the training grounds on the morrow. Bright and early. I'm going to test the hero's ability, and you two can watch and maybe help out." Zelda got up and bid them good day, leaving them with their excited and anxious thoughts.

"We'd better not mess this up," Viven whispered.

"We won't." Tsarien retorted, his stern eyes not leaving the tent flap where he had last seen the princess.


	3. Chapter 3

_Hey guys,_

 _I'm going to be like every fanfic writer and say sorry this is late. To be honest I'm not even sure if there are any people following me to care at all at this point, but y'know, it's the thought that counts._

 _Finals are coming up, but I'll do my best to take a break once in a while to, hopefully, give you a sunny slice of entertainment._

 _Love and stuff,_

 _Eyes Of Enigma_

Chapter III

Link had refused armour when Zelda had asked to have him prove his combat ability. He wasn't used to it, and it would be rather uncomfortable to sweat in it during the winter. She did not seem impressed nor disappointed in his choice, but rather just slight intrigue. For the tournament-style test, everyone was armed with only a wooden sword and shield. Victory was determined by what would be a fatal blow with steel.

The supposed hero found it strange to be known as such an honoured person. He had heard how he had been very skilled with a blade in her past lives, but it certainly felt very clumsy to him now. Readying himself for the first round, he twisted his wrist to spin the well-used appendage of wood, nicks and groves showing its age. It was a practice tool, and yet he began to feel a sense of comfort with it in his hand.

The centre of the massive Hyrule camp had been cleared from normal activity to be built with a fenced-in ring, throngs of on-lookers gathered for the exciting change. Zelda was pleased with their approval; it was good for them to forget about the darker part of their lives for a day. She sat on a raised podium to spectate, Impa at her side.

The princess nodded for the first two combatants to enter. One of the novice soldiers obeyed, and the young man she had saved, clad in a green tunic she had one of the seamstresses fit for him. The symbol caused an awed silence, and the two young men calmly presented themselves before her.

"May the goddesses bless every hand of the combatants," Zelda announced, her voice a melodious ring in the crystalline air. "Begin," she commanded.

The novice soldier immediately separated and lowered his body, returning to thorough training methods he received from the higher recruits. Zelda's eyebrows rose high when she watched Link, who had not taken a stance or a defensive position. He was completely relaxed and his hands were almost idle, his feet slightly apart and knees bent only by a bit. He was staring at the novice in an almost ghostly way, creating a degree of unease in the crowd and his opponent for some time.

Hesitating enormously with insecurity, the novice finally launched a calculated attack, sword brought to a low side slash. As he pushed through the heavy air towards his opponent, Zelda leaned forward in her seat slightly to capture the next busy two seconds. With a cloud of mist marking his heavy and calm exhale, Link stepped back only enough to avoid the wooden sword coming his way, promptly and powerfully striking his enemy's weapon out of his hand. With graceful fluidity, he stooped down and slid his leg under as the unarmed soldier attempted to retreat. A wooden blade by the throat called the match.

Cheers for the hero proceeded the shameful and depressed disappearance of the loser, who was encouraged by his mentors and friends. Link placed his sword in the belt of his tunic and bowed to Zelda respectfully. The princess applauded slowly, a slight smirk on her face with unsurprised amusement.

"I'm hardly impressed," Impa grunted behind her. "That was a sorry display by out man."

Zelda shook her head and did not respond.

The next seven matches were progressively more advanced, and thus, longer. Three more first level matches determined the second-tear combatants, where experienced soldiers and a young Sheikah climbed. Link, Zelda observed, remained very relaxed and focused even when his final match against the Sheikah began to waver. Yet he still bested him with his increasing comfort with a blade.

Impa's excitement and restlessness increased in energy behind Zelda, and she expressed loud displeasure when her young student was defeated. When the princess stood to address her people after Link's victory, the air grew silent again. Dressed in her leather armour and vibrant purple, she perched on the edge of the platform, an exotic bird.

"Congratulations. You have made it to the last round. Prepare to meet your final combatant," she said calmly to him in a voice low enough that not everyone could hear. She turned her head to a specific spot in the crowd to her left. "Tsarien and Viven, the Druid Twins," she announced, causing an uproar among the delighted children who were happy to see someone young in the ring. The adults cheered along for the sake of sport, and the two dazzled and excited twins entered, deep blue tunics waving and knives at the ready.

The command to begin was made quickly, providing no time for Link to process the fact that he was going up against two so young. He gave an almost spiteful glance towards Zelda, but she didn't react in return. What she had set in motion was working.

Tsarien and Viven were swift and agile, but they couldn't risk being clumsy. In the midst of the cheering and hurling encouragement, Tsarien immediately drew back his dagger and took a defensive position while Viven shrank into her clothes to pop out as a small brown fox, quickly keeping to Link's blind spot.

Zelda leaned back and crossed her legs. Let's see how he does with this, she thought. When Link tried to regain the upper hand, Viven was always there to bound back into place behind him, a lingering danger of being flanked. For a long while, he did nothing, and just listened. Zelda began to grin.

Impa chuckled deeply. "Smart boy. He knows they'll get impatient."

"He is quick to spot weakness," Zelda replied, nodding in agreement.

"Be careful of that, my young mistress," Impa muttered with a mischievous and wolfish smile. "Men can be quick to spot a young girl's weakness."

Zelda's long ears twitched with annoyance, but she let it by.

Just as they thought, Tsarien was the first to move forward. Link met his strikes every time, and with a longer weapon, often drove the lab back for a few moments to restore balance. Viven paralleled Tsarien by dancing by Link's heels, watching his movements carefully with rich green eyes. Occasionally she would nip at his ankles to distract him, and he was clearly straining to ignore her.

Tsarien was finding it difficult to discover gaps in Link's defense, and as the smaller of the two young men, he began to lose endurance. As Impa suspected, instead of conserving energy by staying defensive, he became exasperated and impatient, risking everything on one shot. In contrast, Link was still calm in collected, albeit putting a considerable degree of effort into the fight.

When Viven witnessed her brother slipping, she acted to save him by giving a healthy but still shallow bite to Link's ankle, right through his boot.

The crowd was quieted by the violent gesture, as well as Link's reaction. Instead of crying out or flinching wildly, he was utterly unmoving, hilt to hilt with Tsarien's small dagger, wooden sword in disrepair and eyes alight with his focused challenge towards the younger boy. Zelda felt a chill run up her spine, and she got the strangest feeling of seeing such a thing before. Tsarien felt his heart skip a beat as his hands could no longer withstand the pressure, and he was disarmed. With another fluid motion, Link didn't hesitate to smack Viven off him with the wooden implement.

The match was called, shouts of joy could be heard, and after a few minutes of exchanged excitement, Zelda asked them all to quickly depart. As the citizens returned to their lives or helped to take down the ring, Zelda stood and turned to her Sheikah friend.

"We'll leave in two days. You'll be my steward until I return, understand?"

Impa bowed. "Your people will wait for you patiently."

The princess descended to the ring to congratulate Link officially. Viven had returned to her clothes and her human form, clutching her bruised side that Link had struck. The hero himself was apologetic to the young fighters, and even complimented their prowess. They didn't reply.

"Go to Lileh," Zelda ordered kindly. They were both quick to agree. "And you, as well. You're lucky she hasn't picked up anything like foam-of-mouth. Come to my quarters when you are done."

§§§

"Why did you do that?" Link asked Zelda as she gathered various clothing and weapons into a small bag. She glanced at him with a pure blue gaze as she passed him by, heading towards the bookshelf and lifting out the heirloom scroll.

"You mean the match?" she asked, entirely aware of what he was asking. He nodded in return, his gaze communicating the slightly disrespectful annoyance that he would not put into words. She sighed and put her hands on her hips. "I wanted to make sure you would follow my command even if it is uncomfortable for you. To make sure you will always do the best for Hyrule."

"And if that means your own life?" Link asked quickly.

Zelda blinked in surprise, and her eyes grew sad. "Even the soul of a royal is worth less than my nation. It is that resolve that moved me to become mortal in my past life."

Link nodded silently, a pensiveness distilling between them. "You've been taking this all very well," Zelda added, shifting her weight awkwardly.

He shrugged. "It seems very familiar, all of this," he said, a cunning grin showing the softer features of his face.

Zelda smiled at that, relieved that she was not the only one overwhelmed with the thick sense of déja vu. His young face spoke experience to her, and she realized how grateful she was that she was with another old soul. He's my friend, not just the hero, she thought.

Link watch her graceful form carefully as she moved over to her bedside and pulled the large shield from its place hanging on a support post. Deep ultramarine in hue and highly decorated with the crest, it was handed to him gently.

"It was kept from the last hero's battles. Used my men and women of the royal house since. I recently had it reinforced and restored. I hope it suit you," Zelda told him kindly.

Link accepted it slowly, amazed at her generosity, and immediately felt comfortable with the heavy object. He did not forget himself in front of his princess, however. "Thank you, Your Highness. I will use it to protect our people."

Zelda nodded in approval. "I know you will."

§§§

Viven moaned with the pain of her bruise, doubled over on a chair beside Lileh's work table. The old woman barely minded her, already done what she could for the young lass. Viven felt like her ribs were cracked. They weren't of course, but it still burned like hell.

"Stop making so much noise," Lileh snapped. "I told you that your injury is not worth my magic right now. You'll be fine in a couple of days. Your muscles aren't even damaged! Not barely, anyhow –"

"You used a healing spell for Link! And a charm for infection," Viven whined.

Lileh made a click with her mouth. "Still such a child . . . he had been bitten by a fox! When you change, your biology does too. Who knows what's in your spit as a fox that isn't there as a human?"

Viven almost growled, but she managed to hold back. Tsarien was a little further away, cross-legged on the ground and rubbing ointment on his sore wrists. "That guy has serious muscle power. I felt like my hands were going to melt off"

Lileh chuckled. "Honestly, where was he when I was young?"

"Ugh, gross, Lileh!" Tsarien exclaimed. "Besides, everyone knows that the goddess Hylia preserved his spirit with hers because she fell in love with him."

Lileh sighed with a new serious tone. "It will not always be the case. Different lives change people in different ways. But it's possible this time around."

Viven had grown pensive, and the old herbalist knew why.

"Pull your head out of the clouds, my dear," Lileh told her softly so her brother wouldn't hear. "Your match will come soon enough."

"Doubt it," Viven muttered.

Lileh cackled loudly in response. "So pessimistic for someone so young! You've got a lot more living to do before you're allowed to be like that."

Tsarien closed the lid on the ointment and tossed it perfectly onto Lileh's working table, propping up his head on his hand like he was bored. "I want to leave now."

"Second it," Viven replied.

Lileh groaned a bit. "You two should learn from your battle with the young hero instead. You're having the same problem right now. Patience is a virtue!"

"I live life in the fast lane, thanks," came the unison.


	4. Chapter 4

_8 days, 23 hours, 35 minutes until my last exam is over . . ._

 _Send me a message if you relate right now. We can suffer together. They say that misery loves company. *smiles sweetly while tears stream down face*_

 _I'm so glad I that made an effort to do this for you guys. I hope you enjoy this next chapter. It's a longer one, so buckle up as I attempt to make decent character definition and development._

 _Love and stuff,_

 _Eyes Of Enigma_

Chapter IV

Zelda twiddled with the feathered end of her arrows as she scanned carefully over a plain dotted with small patches of growth. Even under a thick layer of snow, she recognized every slope and landmark. This was as far as she was ever allowed to go. As far as Impa would show her. This was her land. Her people's land.

Link was crouched a few feet away from her, white puffs of breath the only sign that he was alive. In the chill, he reached up to his ears to warm them up temporarily; the cap he had been given wasn't quite the right style to have his ears covered inside. He seemed uneasy, Zelda observed. She imagined that he was reminded of his unpleasant experiences when he saw the capital on the horizon, once his prison.

The princess pulled her hood away from her face and slowly shrunk down to reach his level. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye to meet her empathetic gaze, then back to their surroundings. She waiting a bit longer, capturing his odd expression, then twisted away and up, searching for their younger companions.

"Enough frolicking," Zelda called to the twins, who were touching and tasting almost anything new to them. They had never been so far from the main camp, but that was no reason to lose their minds over it. They followed Zelda's lead smartly after her warning, blue robes fluttering in the sharp wind chill.

"Where are we going?" Viven asked, purposefully fluffing up the snow as her feet lifted periodically.

Zelda adjusted the strap of her bag over her shoulder and pulled on the hem of her gloves. "The Temple of Nayru is closest, so that's where we are headed."

"What should we expect when we get there?" Link inquired, his eyes serious with the concern of what was in store for them.

Zelda did not meet his gaze. "Each temple is supposed to be a challenge for whoever bears the respective piece of the Triforce. Din's temple, of course, has both the challenge and the bearer, presumably. As the bearer of the Triforce of Wisdom, this temple is my challenge. I must prove that I am worthy of the full extent of its power." The twins exchanged looks and Link looked down at his feet. "I'm trusting you three with ensuring I can get through whatever trials the temple presents. Even if it is against my will at the time. Understood?"

"We won't hurt you," Tsarien piped up stubbornly.

Zelda halted and gripped her bow tightly, giving the young lad a glare he would not forget. "You will do as I say," she demanded coldly, kicking up snow as she soldiered forward. Tsarien's face hardened with rebellion and annoyance. Viven held his hand to comfort him, and Link gave him a shrug and a sympathetic glance. The boy was not affected by the kind treatment; he stared forward at the princess with confusion and hurt. He couldn't understand why she was suddenly being so harsh, especially since he was just trying to tell her that he would rather die than her.

The hero would do that before I would, he thought. She thinks I can't handle protecting her and Viven, just because he won that tournament.

The two older teenagers slid down a steep slope with careful control, but just before Tsarien moved to follow, his sister snatched the sleeve of his robe to stop him. Her face was slack with petrifying fear. "Do you hear it?" she whimpered to him.

He stared at her with wide green eyes and listened for signs of life amongst the muffling snow. He could hear his breathing, Viven's, Link's, and Zelda's. The hum of the earth was also there, as usual. Yet there was something else. Something strange. It seemed to be coming from the air, but nothing was around them. It was almost as if the entire sky was beating down on them with a soft and eerie drum.

"What . . . is that?" he whispered, more to himself than anyone else. Viven clutched his hand and trembled.

"What's wrong?" Link shouted from below, his hand on the hilt of his sword as if he sensed trouble was coming.

"There's no time to find out," Zelda hissed with a small curse under her breath. Her eyes were ahead, fixed on a group of bandits who had spotted them. They were far off, but not enough to make running for it worth the energy. She gripped an arrow between her fore fingers and tightened it on the bowstring, taking aim. "A hunting party," she called out so the twins would hear. All four of them dropped their travel bags and took to arms. The white cloud of snow kicked up by pounding horses thundered closer. "You two defend the high ground," Zelda ordered.

"But you're the archer!" Viven protested.

The princess loosed and killed a bandit, slowing the horse he was riding on with dead weight. "Do as I say. I can handle close-quarters combat better than you two. I need you to watch our backs."

Link nodded at them in agreement, so they gritted their teeth and obeyed. An arrow landed dangerously close to Link and was buried in snow. He flinched at the sudden movement but still held fast in his position.

As the six remaining bandits closed in, Zelda took out one of the horses and tumbled out of the way as it fell, spraying snow in its wake. Link shuffled forward and slit the enemies throat with the swift twist of his wrist before any harm came to Zelda as she pulled back up to her feet.

Five horsemen surrounded them, their mounts crying out with the tense energy of the air. They recognized Zelda almost instantly and focused their efforts on her without even regarding the children over the ridge. Tsarien whipped a knife at the bandit closest to Zelda, missing his throat but reaching a mortal spot in the stomach. The horse spooked in the violence and kicked out towards the purple-clad girl who hesitantly ended the animal as well.

As Link was busy with his own opponents, Zelda became overwhelmed with two attackers. Engaged with one still on horseback, another who was forced to dismount had full access to her blind spots. Viven did her best to aid the hero, but Tsarien knew that throwing knives would do little to better Zelda's situation. Mustering up the courage of facing the chewing out from her that he would get later, he slid down the slope and leapt toward the foot soldier with the gathered momentum.

The princess cried out as she finally found an opening in the horsemen's defense and made quick business of him. Without hesitation, she moved to take care of the enemy behind her and nearly slaughtered Tsarien, who was pulling his knife from a dead body. She jumped back in surprise, nearly falling into the path of a horse she had spared only seconds before.

Viven shrieked in fright as the last living bandit chased her off the high ground and aimed a crossbow at Hyrule's last monarch. With such a close range, there was almost no way he could miss a vital organ. Both Tsarien and Link moved to somehow save her, but it wasn't enough, Zelda knew.

At the moment the bandit was about to pull the trigger on the crossbow, the snow around him seemed to groan in protest, and his mount cried out in horrid fear. Depressing under him in a large ring, it exploded upwards to reveal the mammoth maw of a dark translucent body, almost like a serpent from the earth. It lifted upwards powerfully, swallowing the bandit, horse and all. The four surviving creatures watched in utter astonishment as the gigantic creature snapped its jaw closed and began to descend.

"Run," Tsarien said, taking a few steps back. Then he whipped his head wildly from Zelda to his sister. "Run!" he exclaimed.

As two blue, one green, and one purple dot tore across the expanse of white in a frantic attempt to put as much distance between them and his monster, the dark beast buried back under the snow and earth and began to pursue them. Zelda felt her lungs begin to shriek in the cold air and her legs became lead. As she glanced at her companion, the young man focusing all his fear and the children nearly crying in their impending doom, she prayed for fate to favour them. There was no way they could outrun that thing.

"Tsarien! Viven!" she cried over the pounding in her ears and the thundering danger behind them, "What is that?"

Tsarien nearly lost his footing but kept running, his ponytail coming loose. "Some sort of angry spirit. We have to calm it."

"How are we supposed to do that?" Link shouted, and Zelda found it strange for a moment to hear his voice so loudly.

The twins' silence implied that they did not know a solution. Zelda searched her mind swiftly. With all the books she had read, all the education she had been given, there had to be something useful tucked away. The only counter to darkness she could think of was, somewhat obviously, light.

The princess pulled out an arrow and commanded the power of her Triforce to emerge, making the little triangle of light to appear on her hand. Link's also emerged in response, and he nodded to her in understanding. Fearing that her panic would cause her plan to fail, she focused all her energy on the arrow in her hand, her legs carrying her forward, and the power that she hardly knew how to control.

I am the protector of my people, the goddess Hylia! No way this is going to end here, she insisted to herself. You are going to work, she said to the simple arrow. You will! Right now!

Viven screamed and tripped into the snow. "Zelda!"

"Do something!" Tsarien added frantically, stopping for his sister.

"With the Power of Din!" Zelda called, halting into her archer's position and placing the arrow on the string. Her hood fell off her hood to reveal a white-gold head of braided but loose hair dancing around her icy and fearless eyes staring up at her foe. The dark spirit ripped the ground and snow open to catch its prey.

"With the Wisdom of Nayru!" the princess continued, her voice overpowering all other sounds as she took aim. The beast reared its ugly head and opened its lizard-like mouth in preparation for its next meal. Despite being so close to it, her body never wavered and her will was twice as strong, even as every instinct screamed at her to flee.

She took in a calculated breath. "With the Courage of Farore," she muttered quietly so only she could hear, her frozen eyes piercing across to her target. From her right hand holding the bowstring all the way to the tip of the arrow, a delicate white and gold light trickled into the weapon, decorating it with the strong magic from her soul.

She loosed, and like a lightning flash it struck the spirit's eye socket, making it writhe and emit the most awful, ear-shattering cry in its agony. Before it fell, its body began to disintegrate from its wound to what was left of it in the ground. Slowly its substance melted away into the cold air, and a silence distilled over them until they were alone on the winter plain.

Zelda watched in disbelief for a few very long and quiet seconds until she remembered where she was. Exhaustion from the effort of running and fighting so hard, she attempted to gracefully sit on the cold earth. "Go in peace," she sighed, her eyes closed with fatigue and her bow cast away at her side. All traces of the Triforce's influence had disappeared.

Rapid footfalls crunching the snow proceeded the worried questions of her companions. "Are you alright?" Link rushed first, kneeling next to her to make sure she wasn't hurt. She just nodded at him. Viven didn't say anything, simply running over and giving Zelda a tight hug.

"That was amazing," Tsarien gasped. "Have you done that before?"

"Once," Zelda replied calmly, "during my first battle. It was by accident then; I still don't have full control."

"Maybe you will after the temple," the young boy pondered.

"Thank you, Zelda," Viven whispered up to her. "That bad sound is gone now. You healed the angry creature."

"What was it angry about?" the princess asked.

"The bandits are cruel to the land and its animals," Link offered, his tone returning to relaxed seriousness but slightly spiteful. "No doubt that the spirit was a product of that."

"It will take a long time to restore Hyrule," Tsarien added, letting out his adrenalin with a long breath.

"Hey, look," Viven said, pointing to the rounded slope ahead of them. A surviving horse that was left behind from their battle was trotting towards them. It stopped a few metres away, looking them all in the eyes and bobbing its head. "She says she wants to stay with us," Viven translated.

Zelda lifted off the ground to greet the mare, dipping her head in respect and giving her a pat on the neck. "We don't have enough to feed you," she said sadly, gazing into the bright dark eyes of the friendly creature. She shook her mane and pulled her head back to lightly bite a pack on her saddle.

"She was fed from there. There's enough, since it wasn't long since she was at the 'place of two-leggers'." Tsarien told Zelda.

The chestnut mare went around the princess and pushed forward towards Link. The hero took a step pack in surprise, but became calm when she gently sniffed his tunic and affectionately bumped her head into him. He hesitantly patted the mount, looking very surprised and confused.

"Did you meet her when you were imprisoned?" Zelda inquired. "She seems to know you."

"I never saw any horses," he replied, clearly beginning to enjoy the mare's attention.

"She says her name is Epona," Viven told them. "And she thinks you're familiar. Maybe because you still smell like bandits?"

"You know he doesn't," Tsarien snapped. "At least, I didn't notice. You smell Hyrulian to me."

"She's insisting that you are a friend of hers. Weird."

Zelda walked over and patted the beast's flank. "You're welcome to come with us, Epona. I hope you don't mind carrying out belongings and keeping them safe?"

Epona sighed happily, and the twins giggled.

"That's a yes," they said in unison.

§§§

Link dug through Epona's left saddle bag and pulled out a handful of oats. Her head picked up from the ground where she was foraging under the snow for roots, and he held out the food for her as her strong lips mowed it down. He grinned at his new companion for a moment, then returned to a stoic expression when he heard someone approach. Looking up at the diamond-encrusted night sky, he listened to the twins' muttering and Zelda's footsteps for a brief peaceful moment.

"Tsarien and Viven managed to put their heads together for a smokeless fire," Zelda informed him, stroking Epona's neck. "You should bring her over to get warm."

Link gave her a quizzical look. "You know how to make a smokeless fire. Why did you wait for them to figure it out?" Then he realized the answer to his own question. "You're teaching them to learn on their own."

"Our situation requires them to grow up quickly," she confirmed, her sky blue eyes growing a bit sad. "He couldn't even take a simple order, and Viven will follow his lead. It's dangerous."

"We made it through," Link pointed out. "He was just trying to help you."

"He let the enemy take the high ground and risked not only my life but also Viven's," Zelda protested. "He doesn't think before he acts. He doesn't have the knowledge and experience."

"Neither do you," Link rebuked fearlessly. His intense gaze told her that he was not speaking as a soldier would to his princess. "Maybe," he continued quietly, "you should consider their opinion to develop strategies instead of undermining their abilities."

"Their abilities are exceptional, I will admit," Zelda insisted, "but they need direction. I'm the one who has been on the battle this longest. I've been educated and trained ruthlessly for survival."

"So, you know what's best?" he challenged, thinking of his own experiences. He knew she wasn't thinking about the whole picture. She was being irrational.

Zelda straightened with her increasing will. "Out of all of us, yes. I have the Triforce of Wisdom, the gift of Nayru. My soul is that of Hylia."

"Nayru's other gift was the creatures of the world," Link said flatly. "You're a human being, Zelda. You can't know everything."

"You don't know what is best for us," Viven piped up from behind her. Zelda turned quickly, startled, finding Tsarien there as well. The two of them were holding hands and watching her intensely.

"You weren't even around," Tsarien said. "You were busy playing princess while we were the laundry brats honing our skills with the Sheikahs. You only started to care when we became useful."

"That's not true," Zelda returned, trying her best not to lose her temper. Why didn't they understand? She did what she did because she had to. "If you can't learn quickly how to take orders, then everything falls apart."

"Same goes for listening," Link told her. "I may not have a lot of experience with working with others, but I know that we are not a troop of soldiers waiting for your every breath. You should consider the needs of all of us before devising a strategy. Listen to what we have to say too. We might think of something that you don't."

"Doubt it," Zelda replied sharply, turning on her heel to the small flame still catching to the tinder. They don't understand, she thought. They don't get how hard I've worked. I can't risk it all just because they're feeling neglected. They'll have to step up or step away. The whole kingdom is counting on us. Counting on me.

"Link," Viven muttered once Zelda was out of earshot. "What do we do?"

"How should I know?" the older boy said, stroking Epona's nose. "She's made up her mind. I don't think she's the sort of person to change it easily."

"She thinks she can handle everything on her own," Tsarien sighed. "I remember watching her training with Impa once. The physical training was normal, but the way her she talked to her . . . it's not Impa's fault, it's just she fed the fire when she was always telling Zelda that she was Hylia, she was the chosen vessel, she was the protector of Hyrule. Even when you came, the hero of Hyrule, Zelda still didn't let go of that."

"Clearly," Link replied. "Well, just do as she says for now. Maybe this temple will help out a bit."

"Problem," Viven butted in, her voice high with increased fluster. She was pointing towards the flickering fire. No faces were lit from the warm glow. "She's gone."


	5. Chapter 5

_Happy Holidays, dear readers._

 _I'm happy that I managed to piece this together. I blazed through the pages of my notebook to write this rather furiously. I hope you enjoy it._

 _Also, I'm attaching some links here for some pencil and ink tip concept art, if you want to take a look. I took the pictures with my phone, so it may not have the quality you are used to like some of the breathtaking stuff on Tumblr, but I had fun with it anyway._

 _Link: file/d/0B9DjzjuiYe4NVzlDZk1SRUREWk0/view?usp=sharing_

 _Zelda: file/d/0B9DjzjuiYe4NaTlkZHg1S2JtOUk/view?usp=sharing_

 _Tsarien and Viven: file/d/0B9DjzjuiYe4NVGllSkdwc2x4MEE/view?usp=sharing_

 _Love and stuff,_

 _Eyes Of Enigma_

Chapter V

Link cursed under his breath. He turned to watch the twins and Epona catch up with him, stretching his arms up above his head and sighing. The slow and fluffy snowfall was unrelenting, albeit gentle, making the lost monarch's footprints gradually indistinguishable. Assuming she had stopped for warmth or sleep, they were a few hours behind her already. He was tired from little rest and his nose and ears were a bit pink from the cold air.

Even by warm embers, there was no way he could relax with such a horrible feeling in his gut. It was so similar to how he felt every night before the bandits would make him fight for sport. That instinct that warned danger. He only found comfort in the fact that he always managed to survive, and that Zelda might also be safe in the end.

"Can you still smell her?" the older boy asked Tsarien.

"Barely," he replied, his tone weary and serious. "It won't be long until I can't sense her."

Link made a sharp intake of breath. "Why would she leave us to freeze out here when we don't know where we are going? She took the map; did she expect us to just go back without her?"

Viven made a groan. "She's not well. Not rational."

"Kind of ironic," Tsarien added.

Link glanced at them both. "Not helpful."

Tsarien crossed his arms and shivered. "Perhaps Epona could track her."

"Looks like she's already on it," Viven said, nodding ahead. The shaggy chestnut mare soldiered forward past them, head down and hooves tracing over the disappearing path.

Link didn't respond and simply followed behind the horse blindly. If they could not locate the princess in the next day, there would be no point in trying anymore. I won't bother staying around, he thought. What can the hero do without the other half? Perhaps she would come back just fine, but then, she could handle everything, if she was so sure of herself.

He had never known himself to be so spiteful, but he couldn't help but have an anger for how this was all turning out. He finally gets away from his hell and starts fighting for something worthwhile and beautifully free, and here he was. Being useless. Hyrule was struggling to hold its head above the water and everything was on the shoulders of four emotionally insecure teenagers.

He smirked for a moment, his soft face almost mischievous. How cliché, he thought.

§§§

Zelda held a hand up against the wind to stop the harsh snow from leading in her eyes and glanced upwards. Quite literally in the middle of nowhere, her map had led her to a wood cabin in a patch of barren forest. She had checked her direction and the map several times; she was definitely in the right place.

How can this be? she wondered. The Temple of Nayru, the altar of Wisdom, a mere winter residence beside no landmarks or distinguishing features. The comely home bore Hyrule's crest on the door, only one triangle of the Triforce filled in. Her Triforce. Gathering a cold breath through her nose, she pushed herself into the building.

Expecting the insides of a living place of a few people and a warm fire, she as startled to discover it completely frozen over. Frost and dripping crystallized icicles clung to the walls and ceiling in lace-like patterns, and the floor was a flawless slab of glassy ice.

Zelda shivered and turned back for the door, wondering how this could be the case after witnessing puffing wood smoke from the house just moments before. They only entrance and exit had disappeared behind a wall of chilling crystals.

Illusion, she considered instantly. Perhaps I'm in the right place after all. Observing the room all around once more, she forced herself to be calm. I can handle this, she decided. No problem.

"Care to show what you have in store?" she challenged to an unseen entity.

No one answered, but she felt the air change behind her. Almost as if there was breath there. Life there. She turned again. Nothing.

"Who is there?" she called out.

An intake of air through a mouth echoed through the room, bouncing past her at all directions. Her stance was battle ready, her eyes wide and careful.

"You know who I am," came a voice she recognized. Her face became hot with adrenaline. "I am you."

"Liar," she replied quickly. "I know this trick."

"No," it replied. "You don't know. You don't know anything." The voice was so even, its tone almost robotic.

Another breath shifted around her.

"That's incorrect," Impa sighed. "Do it again."

Zelda blinked against the cold sweat running into her eyes. "Why do I need to learn this?" she whispered over the voice of her much younger self, completely aware of the memory.

"It's your duty to learn everything you can to help your people. You will save them," Impa explained kindly. "Never forget: your mind is your greatest weapon. It is your best shield. It will never let you down."

"I have been doing that!" she protested to the silence. "I honed my skills for years. I studied until I fell asleep at my desk! I trained until I bled."

"You don't know anything," her twin repeated.

"Shut up," Zelda snapped impatiently.

A third breath filled her ears.

"Why doesn't she talk to us anymore?" Viven muttered quietly.

The princess stood still and stared at her feet, waiting for the response. This was not one of her memories.

"Because she cares more about her books than us," Tsarien hissed. "Face it. She just uses everybody to her advantage."

"Don't say such an awful thing!" Viven cried out, tucking her knees closer to her chest. "I'm sure she's really busy with princess stuff."

The last word clung in the air as it faded. Zelda didn't move or speak.

"What's wrong?" her other self asked, sounding almost amused. "Cat got your tongue? You don't know anything."

The next breath was thick and in pain, sucking in the oxygen for dear life.

The cringing noise of flesh meeting a heavy slap made Zelda flinch. A gut punch forced a young man's lungs to collapse with a grunt and a bloody cough. The distinct sound of a knife leaving its scabbard proceeded a teeth-clenched cry.

"Next time you decide to break the rules, you're in for worse, boy," an older man spat, giving another kick before leaving the room.

For a little while, all that could be heard was heavy painful breathing and the slow drip of blood meeting the floor. Then a faint, deep hum began, a bit broken from a few sobs. He was recounting a Hyrulian melody. Zelda could have sworn that her heart had stopped. Oh god, she thought, shuddering. It was a calm and comforting sound, but she only felt herself grow colder as it sank into her ears.

"You don't know anything," came the voice once again.

Zelda wiped her wet face before the moisture froze to her skin. "I don't know anything," she admitted.

"So you know what's best?" Link's imitation asked her.

"No, I don't," she returned.

"You don't know what is best for us," Viven added.

"I get it!" she screamed at the room. "I understand, okay? Now stop."

"Why should I?" her doppelganger inquired.

"Because I said so. I rule my own head."

"That may be true," it said, "but that doesn't mean that you can control everything."

"Is this really your challenge?" she demanded. "Not much, is it?"

"Isn't it?" it continued to tease. "What do you think I am?"

"You're an illusion. Advanced magic. Maybe even just a mask for a criminal. You've desecrated the Temple of Nayru!"

"Nope," it returned playfully. "I am you. You've desecrated this temple. No one else."

Zelda's patience thinned. "Nayru gave Wisdom to me. How could I dishonour this temple?"

It sighed long and loud. "It may have been given, but you have dared to bring a misused gift into this house. Nayru is angry. Do you wish to give it back when you have broken it so badly?"

"How do I fix it?" Zelda asked, relieved she was finally getting somewhere with this impossible thing.

"Come look at us in the ice," it prompted. Zelda found a clear piece that reflected her face nicely against the wall. "Tell me what Wisdom is," it demanded calmly.

She opened her mouth to respond instantly, but was interrupted.

"Don't give me a textbook definition. What does Wisdom mean to you?"

Zelda hesitated. Her answer had all Hyrule at stake. She calmed her nerves. I am the goddess Hylia. This trial is nothing. Her sapphire eyes were sharp and determined.

"Wisdom is . . ."

§§§

"What is this?" Tsarien asked loudly, standing between Link and his sister, Epona just behind. All three of them were staring up at a thin, tall tower, at least ten men's heights high, and no wider that three arm's spans across. No windows, a bluish stone making the walls, and a triangular roof.

"It's very small for a temple," Viven observed. She noticed the crest on the double doors, a bit snow-covered. Padding up to it, she brushed the white powder off and pushed forward. It was frozen shut. "They're a little unfriendly."

Link came up beside her with confidence. "Let me," he said, holding up his left hand to the doors. When the faint golden glow appeared across the back of his hand, the whole building seemed to moan and bend over them in protest, or perhaps recognition, and entrance cracked open.

The room inside was dimly lit, so it wasn't until they all climbed in that anything could be made out. It was almost entirely empty, save for a large stone altar with various symbols and sacred inscriptions. The square walls seemed to thrum with an unknown element. A faint glow like moonlight brought to attention what was lying across the stone centrepiece.

"Zelda!" Viven shrieked, flying over and pouncing on the altar to see if she was still alive. It was almost as if she was asleep, so beautiful and quiet, but her skin had a tinge of purple and blue, and her fingers had signs of extreme frostbite.

"How?" Tsarien whimpered, tearing up with sorrow.

Link's expression was hard with grief and frustration. "She couldn't have frozen so quickly naturally. Something else is at work here."

"She must've failed the test," Viven guessed, letting out a sob.

Link held out a hand to help her down gently. "Then let's bargain for a second chance." He looked up again, but instead of watching the remains of his princess, he focused all his being on the third-filled Triforce on the back wall. His hand raised up in such a way that the gold replica on his skin would overlap perfectly. "Nayru," he called out, "reveal yourself for our lost souls."

A sharp, long, almost relaxed intake of breath spilled into the room to all corners. The sheer power of such a small vocalization was almost intoxicating.

"Hm," was the first inkling of a smooth, multi-toned voice. "Farore's child. And two of Hylia's people. What would you like? Shelter? Healing?"

"Give Zelda back," Viven cried, emotions falling out of her in borderline disrespect for the deity. Nayru didn't seem to care.

"Hylia has always been so impulsive. She made her own little nation out of the creatures I planted here. Made them 'better' than the rest. Put herself above them. Risked her divinity for them. Gave up her sacred blood for the love of a mortal – " Link's face lit up with warmth when he heard her emphasis, "—and look at her now. She can barely tell right from wrong, just like any other mortal."

"Zelda is one of your creatures, just like all of us," Tsarien protested bravely. "She just made a mistake. Please, give her another chance."

"A mistake is the difference between life and death," Nayru replied. "Why should I pay her special attention?"

"You've already paid her special attention by killing her yourself. After all, she bears your gift of Wisdom," Link pointed out.

A low liquid chuckle rang out. "Ever the voice of reason and justice. Just like Farore. Too bad Hylia didn't listen to you when she had the chance. So much for my gift."

"Her name is Zelda!" Viven snapped.

Nayru sighed again, as if she was bored. "Fine. Since you keep whining at me, I'll let her try again. But if she can't succeed with all of you here to help her, then you will all get to sleep here."

"Done," Link agreed immediately.

"You are just as impulsive as her," she laughed. "A good match, I suppose."

A gasp came from Zelda's corpse as life returned to her flesh. She sat straight up as if from a nightmare, or maybe as if she had been struck by lightning. Her eyes were wild as she glanced around her light hair spilling from side to side.

"Thank the goddesses!" Viven exclaimed, giving the princess a hug.

"Thank just one goddess," Tsarien muttered.

Link looked at his friend with earnest annoyance, then glanced away as if he was giving up. "Don't scare us like that."

"What's happening?" Zelda asked, dazed and a bit dizzy. "I thought I got it wrong."

"You did." Nayru assured her. "They wouldn't shut up if I didn't give you a re-test. Now hurry up so I can go back to bed."

"Thank you," Zelda muttered in disbelief.

"Yeah, whatever," Nayru huffed.

"What was the question?" Tsarien asked. "We can figure this out together."

"No," Zelda insisted. "It only works if I figure it out for myself."

"What?" Viven returned, quizzical. "Why?"

Zelda puled herself onto her feet. "Because it's my test."

Link groaned. "Honestly." She glared at him, so he continued. "If you hadn't shouldered the world's burdens by yourself, none of this would have happened."

"It's mine to shoulder," Zelda replied. "No one should have to go through this but me. I was bred for it."

"Too bad," the twins said in unison. "We are going to anyway," Tsarien added at the end. "Deal with it."

Zelda blinked. She was used to having to deal with being on her own, not the other way around. Only her brain was her true companion. The only thing she could rely on. It seemed so wrong to do anything else.

"Time is up," Nayru moaned. "C'mon. Try again. What does Wisdom mean to you?"

The princess' eyes landed on Link for a moment. He said nothing, but his gaze was a gentle encouragement. You can do this, he said silently to her. She nodded at him.

"Wisdom is," she began, "being willing to always learn, always listen, and give it back to people when they need it most." She paused. "Wisdom is not knowledge to lean on, it's knowledge to be gained."

A heavy silence pulled on the tension in the cold room.

"Seems you are learning, little sister," Nayru told her. "You're free to go, Zelda."

"Isn't there some sort of unlocking of my Triforce?" Zelda inquired.

"Once you understand the true nature of the gift, the power follows behind," the goddess returned. "Go save your little kingdom."

The four of them paid their respects to the temple and then left, not a word spoken between them. Zelda found herself sullen and silent, and a sad calmness distilled in her spirit. I won't be the same, will I? she pondered. Even though it was a blessing, a piece of her was still frozen back there, and she was forced to move on without it. For her people.


	6. Chapter 6

_Yeah, I know. There was a gap for this chapter because of holiday busyness. I'm back, if anyone was missing me._

 _I'm leaning a bit into the LinkxZelda, Zelink, Zelda/Link area with this chapter, but it's more of a logical consideration, and no actual confession of affection. Don't get excited._

 _Also! I have Tumblr now! I finally did the deed. It's under the same name as my pen name here (eyesofenigma). Check it out for music, my artwork, and possible future fanfic hints here and there . . . also you get to learn my actual name, because I think I deserve to take actual credit for everything. My name is very unique because of my lineage._

 _Love and stuff,_

 _Eyes Of Enigma_

Chapter VI

No matter how close to the fire Zelda inched herself, a chill in her fingers would not leave. The snow had let up, and the air was a dry and lung-wrinkling kind of cold, but the lack of wind was of some help. She should have been perfectly comfortable, yet a frigid unease gripped her core firmly.

Tsarien and Viven had ventured a short way out of earshot to establish a form of a latrine in the sparse woods surrounding their camp. As the princess untied the straps of her leather armour and loosed her hair out of her braid, Link glanced across the fire at her, his face warm and pleasant in the ember light.

"You're not okay, are you?" he asked calmly, giving her a kind and somewhat awkward smirk.

Her eyes changed colour slightly as she raised her gaze to meet his. "I will be," she returned.

After a few seconds of silence, he pushed a hesitant inquiry out. "What did it feel like? To die, I mean."

"I don't remember," Zelda returned swiftly. "I don't think I really was dead."

Link shrugged. "Nayru called it sleep."

Zelda nodded earnestly. "Yes. Like dreamless sleep. You know you are there, but nothing happens, so you remember none of it." Another quiet period persisted. Zelda shifted her knees closer to her and buried her face between them, and Link stood up to take off his outer tunic and mail. As the mail came off, the inner tunic slipped up his back slightly to reveal old and new scars of various lengths and grains.

Instantly, Zelda's ears were filled with the exhausted and painful breathing of a young man being beaten senseless. She shook her head slightly, trying to rid herself of the memory. Link was about to climb into his bedroll when Zelda spoke up.

"Stop," she muttered, not a request nor a demand. Pulling herself off the ground, her shadow was followed closely by his gaze as she drew closer to him. She opened her mouth to speak, but she couldn't find any air, and none of her thoughts could be articulated. A hand gently landed between Link's shoulder blades, causing him to flinch. Zelda never once looked at him in the face, fixing her eyes on his back as if she could see the scars through his think inner tunic.

"She showed me," Zelda whispered softly. "I'm sorry. I was far too blind with my insignificant problems that I didn't care enough to inquire or notice –"

"Don't." His voice was curt and cold. "Don't patronize me."

"I would never," she snapped in return, her eyes raised and sharp at the challenge. "I may not understand, but being aware is the least I can do. You said it yourself. As a leader, I must be sensitive to everyone's experiences and concerns."

For a few warm seconds, no words were exchanged between them. Zelda pulled herself away and took in a tense breath, returning to her place at the other side of the wilderness hearth. Both youth quietly established themselves in their beds, but sleep was a luxury.

Link ran his hand though his bangs, exposing his forehead to the cold air. "What did you say to Nayru, the first time she asked?"

Zelda's voice caught with embarrassment. "I said that wisdom was a trait acquired through the strengthening of one's mind." She paused, swallowing a bit. "Nayru taught me that I was being too self-centred, hence her revealing your own . . . experiences."

"Pleased to hear it," Tsarien sighed, slipping into his bedroll. He and Viven were always dangerously quiet. "Bathroom is available. Well, if you call it that."

"Thank you for your help; the both of you," Zelda returned.

"Not a pleasure, but you're welcome," Viven giggled. All five settled (including Epona's quiet sighs, of course), save for the younger lady, who persistently fidgeted in her bed mat.

"Viven," Tsarien murmured with annoyance.

"Sorry," she hissed back.

Zelda sighed. It wasn't as if she was going to sleep anyway. "What's wrong, Viven?"

The girl huffed a bit. "I miss Lileh's lullaby. You know, the one that was made to sound like Hyrulian and Sheikah music?"

"I remember," Zelda replied. "I'll sing it for you, if you like."

"Yes please."

Lileh was surprisingly talented in music for someone who claimed to make no sense of the writings or tone. On the contrary, she had scribbled her song down, and her voice was of excellent quality. Zelda's own timbre was much different, but she did her best to replicate the low, smooth lengths of notes and the somehow comforting minor lines.

Link felt his eyes grow heavy as he listened to the sweet song, wondering how it seemed so familiar. Perhaps he had heard it before his capture, or maybe it was just similar to a tune he knew. At the state he was in, it didn't matter much, and he found himself wishing he had such a companion to comfort him during those long years.

§§§

The subtle signs of spring were emerging from the sun-dissolved snow. Green-tipped heather sprouts dared show their heads despite the insistent and damp chill, and as the party of five made their way east, the sun became progressively stronger. Their rations were lasting longer than Zelda anticipated over the three weeks of their journey, mostly thanks to fortunate foraging and hunting. They were all in good health, cheered by the warming weather, and barely noticed by wandering bandit groups. Even Epona was light in her steady steps.

The Temple of Farore was hardly another two-day's trek, but Zelda didn't know what to expect in its appearance. Considering her own experience, she had confidence that Link would recognize a sign that they were in the right direction. She hid her concern from the others; it was anyone's guess what they would find there. The challenges seemed to be tailored for the individual, and Link's life had plenty to work with.

Epona pushed air between her lips and nudged the princess lovingly. Zelda sighed happily and smiled at the kind creature, giving her a good pat.

"Something on your mind?" Link asked her. He had stopped in his path and was turned to look at her with his usual steady, unblinking, and intense gaze. Such an expression, so relaxed and yet serious, gave her a warmth that she could not explain. A familiar comfort with no apparent origin.

Zelda watched the twins ahead of them for a moment, their childish innocence radiating from their playful laughter as they engaged in a snowball fight. Her wistful and fair face made Link smile slightly. "I'm homesick, I suppose," she replied, setting forward with the chestnut mare close behind.

"Me too," Link agreed quietly, only loud enough for her to catch it.

Viven called out from several yards across the flat land. "Come quick!"

Zelda and Link exchanged glances and hurried over to the young girl, her figure stooped down over something long. Tsarien was the first to arrive, and his face turned very pale very quickly. This was the first time Zelda had ever seen a bandit woman who was not a fighter. There was no war paint. No weapons on her body. She lay tragically as a rag doll, dressed warmly and with a bag of rations at her side. The princess studied the gentle, beautiful face framed with thick dark hair. Though their people did not have finer, slender features as Hyrulians did, Zelda imagined that this young woman was a rarity and prized.

"Is she dead?" Viven asked.

Tsarien nodded to his sister sadly. "She wasn't frozen," he told Zelda, "and she's not rotted yet. She must have died recently."

Viven opened what appeared to be supplies wrapped in cloth. "Oh, goddess," she exclaimed breathlessly, turning away. A small face – a child no older than a few months – was revealed from the folds of fabric, blue and lifeless. Link glanced away sadly, clenching his jaw, and Zelda knelt to speak a blessing on the bodies. Tsarien rubbed Viven's back gently as she dry-heaved a few meters away when Zelda found a knife wound that most likely caused the woman's death from blood loss. It looked as if she had attempted to staunch it, but walking for so long in the cold with it proved fatal.

"Why would she be walking away from a settlement?" she wondered aloud.

"She's wearing betrothal jewels on her wrist," Link observed. "But the child as clearly hers. She was most likely running from disgrace. They are very strict on rules of courting and marriage. Women are possessions, like the ancient times."

"How did you figure all that out by being in prison?" she inquired.

He shrugged. "You get bored. The guards talk, you listen. Their language stems from Hyrulian."

Zelda gazed at the young woman's face for a few silent heartbeats. I could have been born into such a life, she supposed. Or could she? Was she destined for privilege, time and time again? Was the spirit of Hylia always royalty?

"She at least deserves a grave," Zelda decided, lifting off the ground and skimming her eyes around. The ground was still too hard for just the four of them to get through in good time, but covering her in flagstone from the old quarry they had passed by barely half an hour earlier would do.

They didn't argue, so they found a way for Epona to drag the stone and made a neat plating over the two corpses.

Then it was left behind. No one would visit. Barely anyone would notice or care. The life of an enemy is a life all the same. That woman probably didn't know who any of them were. She died in fear, her infant in her arms.

All of them were barely alive in sound. The warm sun was not recognized by the drained skin of four travelers. Zelda and Link lingered next to each other, the twins and Epona a bit ahead of them. The older boy was pensive and held a heavier cloud than usual. Zelda could feel it around him, and she entered into it also, embracing their shared emotion. In the end, her life mattered very little. Even his was far more precious. All that she cared about was removing this sad blight on her people's land, removing this dark story from history.

She supposed that was her nature. The reason she gave up her past life. The goddess Hylia was her, but it seemed so much like a different person altogether. Yet it was still in her being to give everything to her people, and to perhaps seek happiness with him . . .

Zelda found herself staring. She hoped with all of her that he didn't notice. Ridiculous, she thought. There is no room for that right now. At least, not yet.

Link had seen the persistently intrigued expression Zelda always had when she was speaking to him or when her mind was wandering. It made his face warm when he remembered Nayru mention something about Hylia falling in love with him during his first life. It was why she became mortal and preserved his spirit. She wanted them to protect Hyrule together, and have all those chances to have a companionship in one form or another. He didn't really know how to process such a deep level of affection.

Yet when they spoke, when they locked eyes, he wasn't sure if it was there at all. Maybe Nayru got it wrong. Maybe he was just flattering himself with such a notion. Or maybe she simply did not remember, and would love him only if the circumstances were right. He laughed at himself. As if they knew what love was at all. He certainly didn't.

He supposed he was the first to teach her such a thing. Perhaps they would learn alongside each other. Ridiculous, he thought. There is no room for that right now.

At least, not yet.

Their hands fidgeted by their sides. There had to be a way Link could comfort her. It was obvious that she had been hurting since she walked out of that temple. Something had changed. In a strange way, he admired her new strength despite her apparent unease. After everything he had been through, there wasn't much in the world that was terrible; he could handle anything now, he felt. Yet watching such a thing happen slowly in someone else, someone he inexplicably cared for, was almost as difficult. Expressing compassion, however, was not always his strong suit.

"What were you doing there," Zelda quietly began, "that day I found you? What was a prisoner doing on the battlefield?"

He swallowed, not looking her in the eye. "They thought you would surrender if they threatened to make me suffer and kill me in front of your men. They called you weak for your rumoured mercy on allies and enemies," he explained carefully. "I managed to work through my bonds and made a break for it. By then we were close by your forces, so I ran through the woods to warn you about the flanking scouts. You were one step ahead, as it turned out, and found me when I was running from a scout bent on recapturing me."

Zelda looked at him with respect. "You could have just left. You tried to warn us and stayed anyway?"

"What choice did I have? I could have survived, but what good would that be if Hyrule didn't? I'd be alone. My people, gone." Still, Link refused to share a gaze. A guilt clung to his mind, but he did his best to ignore it.

"You really are the hero, I suppose," Zelda replied. Her comment felt sarcastic, although he knew she was genuine.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter VII

The Temple of Farore was alarmingly different from Nayru's residence. Instead of a tall, thin tower of a structure, this was built low and wide, and was perfectly square in area. At each corner was a spike with elegant design as that on Nayru's temple. Yet there was no door.

The party stood idle for some time, all five of them considering what to do next. Link and Zelda had both immediately attempted to unlock an entrance by summoning their Triforce and crying out for Farore to reveal some sort of sign, but no assistance came. All that could be heard was the brisk and balmy wind from the adjacent lake.

Fatigued and confused, Zelda called for a meal break, and as she munched on preserved meat and bread, her eyes wandered across the grey waves in thought. If they couldn't figure this out soon, it was likely that they never would, and Hyrule was running out of time. She had known for some months that something was going to change, something drastic and ominous. If they weren't prepared, the small nation would most likely not survive it.

The princess stifled her fears. She couldn't let her feelings get in the way of the mission at hand. Doing her best was not enough, it seemed. She had to expand what it meant for her to try her best, and that was not possible on her own. Nayru had taught her how to trust, she supposed, and it only made her love for her friends and nation stronger. She wanted to shield them from harm, to show them that she was capable of contributing more than a sharp arrow and a sharp tongue. She would protect more than attack; be defensive more than offensive.

It's what Hylia would have done, Zelda pondered with fondness. It's why I am always royal in every life.

Tsarien blinked at Zelda a few times. There was such a focus in her blank gaze and she seemed frozen in time. Viven and Link began to notice also, and just as the older boy was about to ask if everything was alright, she bolted up and towards the presumed entrance of the temple.

With utter bone-chilling silence she stared at the wall for almost a full minute, studying and receded in her own mind. Her stark purple figure was still and strong as the gold mark revealed itself on her right hand. Link instantly noted how it was much brighter than before and had a faint warm and almost melodic feeling, as if a hidden personality was shining through it.

"Hurry," Zelda told them, finally breaking her stare to motion at them. "Gather around me."

Link leapt up and ran over to her side, looking back at the twins. "Stay with Epona and guard the camp."

"But—"

"Please," he continued. "We're relying on you to keep us safe. We'll handle this."

They both nodded in return as they watched the two older teenagers being engulfed in a thin crystal prism, slightly blue and transparent. The magic was powerful and advanced, and Tsarien wondered how Zelda managed to learn such an enchantment. Slowly it moved with the two of them towards the wall of the temple, and with a glance of encouragement, they melted into the cold bricks.

Zelda felt the spell shatter around her and her body hit a warm wooden floor. A harsh cough escaped her lungs and she peeled herself up, a foreign hand on her shoulder helping her.

"Are you alright?" Link asked her, his voice quiet and soft despite the large echoing room.

She raised her head and glanced around the odd dark place as she found the strength to put feet underneath her. "I don't think I should use that spell willy-nilly," she sighed.

"How did you do that?" There was no amazement in his voice, just concern.

"Nayru taught me," Zelda explained. "At least, that's my guess. I'm almost certain."

Link opened his mouth to inquire further, but was silenced as the room was suddenly brightly lit. Warm glowing orbs hung from a ceiling with no chains or ropes, opening up to a sky full of stars. Across the square floor was a pedestal, made of a dark glossy wood just like everything else, and on it was a decorated gold and red velvet chair. The pedestal was carved with writing much like Nayru's shrine, the back wall bore the Triforce crest, and on the chair sat a young woman dressed in a cascading white gown.

Her violet eyes spoke years beyond what her youthful face would show, and her pale, almost silver hair was pinned up with green peridot jewels of maturity. Her expression was calm and almost critical, looking neither annoyed nor saddened nor pleased.

Zelda paced up to the pedestal in astonishment, but remembered her manners enough to kneel in the presence of a goddess. Link swiftly followed her example.

A graceful hand bid them to stand. "I am pleased to see you have come. I expected the child of Courage to enter by himself. Although, I see that is not possible given the nature of Nayru's Love."

"Would you like me to leave, Mistress Farore?" Zelda asked respectfully.

"I don't think it's necessary as long as you stay out of trouble," Farore replied sweetly. Her eyes flickered to Link, but when he cast his gaze away immediately, she frowned a bit. "Why so afraid of looking a goddess in the face? You won't die; this form is not capable of holding all of me."

Link turned his face towards her but still did not look up. Zelda eyed him quizzically and compassionately.

"Ah," Farore sighed. "You've seen what happens when people are tested by a goddess. You saw her suffer and change. Are you afraid of what I will do to you? Yes, you are."

"I am not," Link retorted quickly.

Farore slowly lifted and gliding down to meet him, their bodies only a few inches apart. "Look at me," she said softly to him, as a mother does to coerce a small child.

Link obeyed, his eyes sharp with a strange anger. Zelda had never quite seen an expression like it. She flinched when Farore latched onto his face with her hand invisibly fast, her thumb and forefinger digging into the flesh on his cheeks.

"Do not lie to me ever again," the goddess demanded, every word like searing death.

Link clenched his jaw and bore through it, and there was such a tension in the air that Zelda felt as if she could cut through it with a knife. After another few heartbeats, Farore let him go and returned to her seat as if nothing had happened.

"You don't have that little letter opener that Hylia gave you," Farore said casually.

Link's face scrunched up a bit. "What?"

"She means the sacred blade," Zelda interrupted. "Used by the hero in his battles against evil. Originally it was gift to you from Hylia. You had used it to cleave the earth and protect Hyrule by sending it into the sky as a floating island."

"Right, I remember the stories," he confirmed. "So where is it?"

Zelda flushed. "Impa guards it at the camp. I didn't want to give it to you until you were a fully realized hero of Hyrule. If we had failed, it couldn't be left to fall into enemy hands."

He just shrugged, accepting the reasonable decision.

"You're very self-aware compared to your past lives, young Zelda," Farore noted. "You've come into your own since visiting my sister. I'm impressed."

"Compliments are not my goal," Zelda replied strongly, "but thank you very much."

The goddess nodded with approval and folded her hands fluidly. "And what of you, Link?" have you enjoyed all those wonderful compliments? All the flattery, support, and interest?"

She smirked as the young man became gradually more irritated.

"She knew who you were right away," Farore continued. "All you wanted was to be normal. Well, doesn't everyone? So many years of being alone, and when you come back, they all fawn over you. Not exactly what you were expecting, I suppose."

Link seemed to have relaxed a bit. "No," he returned calmly, "but I am the hero. I would have helped her either way. I wanted to."

"You did say that you would do anything for your nation, but you never predicted something like this, hm? You just went along with all of it."

He glanced guiltily at Zelda, who was listening carefully and silently. "Yes, I did just go along with it, but that doesn't mean I'm doing this against my will."

Farore grinned again. "You know, I'm glad you brought her in. It makes this a lot easier."

"How do you mean?" Zelda inquired, her attention gravitated by hearing her address.

The goddess let out a breath. "To show him how scared he really is. He's afraid of you the most, I think. Afraid he'll disappoint you. Afraid you'll reject him when you find out that he lied to you. When he tells you that he doesn't think he's even the legendary hero at all."

Zelda's confused, doubtful, and almost hurt expression made Link's chest ache and it became very difficult to swallow. "What is she talking about?" she asked him so quietly. She had never heard him talk as much as he did in the past few minutes, but now she wanted him to keep going regardless of how he felt about it. "I want to hear it from your mouth."

He turned to face her squarely. "I told you that I tried to warn your troops the day we met," he began. She nodded when she recalled the conversations that they had not two days ago. "That was only a half truth. I wasn't trying to warn your army, I ran from the moment I got away. I didn't think about Hyrule at all. The only thing I could think of was putting as much distance as possible between me and them, and saving my own skin. I was a coward."

"That's right!" Farore said musically. "You've even dared to lie to me because of your fear. So lowly and filthy. Pride is the root of all evil, wouldn't you agree, Zelda?"

The princess completely ignored her. She never even looking away from his steady, vulnerable gaze. "You're only human. You shouldn't have lied; I wouldn't have judged you."

"I know," he replied with a weak and uneasy smile. "I know that you wouldn't have. I'm sorry."

"So much for that Courage I gave you," Farore interrupted. "Did you lose it somewhere between the generations? I'm not even sure I needed to give it to you in the first place. Now you've lost it all."

"That's a lie," Zelda retorted quickly. "You of all people should know that having fear does not mean you have no courage."

The goddess frowned. "Such insolence. I wasn't talking to you," she hissed. Not a second later and a cut opened up on Zelda's cheek out of nowhere. It wasn't very deep, but it would have stung. She flinched violently at the unexpected pain.

"That was unnecessary," Link snapped quickly.

Farore made a strange face for a moment, then shrugged. It was almost as if she had remorse and then swiftly changed her mind.

"What is your challenge, already?" Link demanded, his patience tried. "I'm ready for whatever you have to say or do."

"Still pretending to be brave. Aren't you tired of living a façade?" Farore asked, her tone surprisingly compassionate. "Your spirit might be exceptional, but that doesn't mean you're not susceptible to flaws. I challenge you to accept those flaws, just as Nayru helped Zelda with hers. I want you to tell me what you struggle with. Seems simple, but to be courageous you must be selfless, and to be selfless, you must let go of your pride."

Zelda was surprised at how similar this was to her own challenge. She was so different from Link, yet they seemed to have suffered from similar problems. She had to admit that she didn't know anything, and now Link had to admit that he was scared. He had already confessed a bit, but there must have been more to it for Farore to continue pressing.

"Zelda," Farore, addressed calmly. "Please, humour me for a moment. I want you to analyze him. Tell me what you know about him. Surely you've thought about it. And be honest."

As annoyed and concerned as she was, Zelda agreed to the goddess' wishes. She regarded her friend squarely, her eyes almost an apology towards him. "He was raised happily for a short time," Zelda began. "It's entirely possible that I played with him as a child. His parents were killed, he was captured and enslaved. He probably believed that he would be rescued, but as boyhood faded, the reality became clear. There was no hope."

Link was frozen with her narration. As she spoke, his life came into living in his mind in a way he had never considered. He had always just moved forward despite everything. Regardless of how he felt.

"His life seemed doomed for torment, like so many who have walked the earth. Then he finds a strange opportunity to leave. To no longer experience such anguish. Then he met me," Zelda said, turning back towards Farore. "He went from having no identity to having it made for him, all in the matter of days. I would be afraid and confused as well."

"And there it is," Farore sighed. "Really, that is his legacy, isn't it? Generation after generation, his life is perfectly normal, for good or for bad, and then he's swept up and away in the grandeur of a quest. He must do what he is called for. He must save Hyrule; he must rescue his homeland. Never once did anyone wonder how he felt about it. So soft-spoken and accepting, he just goes along to get along, hides his fear, gets the job done, feigns passion and concern and determination."

"Is that true, Link?" Zelda asked him. "Did you really just 'go along to get along'?"

His eyes watered without his control. "I told you what you wished to hear."

She surprised him with her valor. "I still have no doubt in my instincts. You are the legendary hero. The Triforce proves it! How can you think you aren't?"

Link's shoulders grew slack. "I'm not the warrior of Hyrule that you want. Nor am I the one you need. The damage of being a prisoner for so long is done; don't try to patch me up and pass me for some sort of icon. It won't happen."

"I thought you shared my desire for our people to finally have their home back," Zelda retorted. "You were never meant as an icon."

"Now look who's the liar," Link forced, their discussion quickly becoming a heated argument. "From the start, I was your morale-boosting tool. Not for one second did I ever believed that you help that tournament just to prove that I would be loyal to you despite how uncomfortable it made me."

"I was trying to help you, dammit!" she screeched back. He blinked at her, astounded. Slowly she breathed herself back to a controlled tone. "I thought it would boost your confidence. That it would show or somehow reveal your purpose. To remind you of how special your soul is."

"That's just it," Link replied softly. "I'm no one special. I'm just a regular Hyrulian who was captured and then escaped. I never asked for this; I don't want it. I'm a coward who just swims with the current."

Zelda's expression screwed into hurt and ager, the tears making her eyes look even more clear and blue than normal. "If that's the case, then you can leave if you want. Just know this: no one will stop you from staying with us. You can never once use that power on your left hand, and you can still help. You can be a normal man, if you want it that badly. No one ever forced you to do this but yourself."

Link considered her last sentence. It was entirely true. Even if he felt pressured or swayed or influenced in any way, he had the last word on his life. That was so new. It was a control he never had and never accessed or thought of. Everything was so open now; he could have the final say. What would he do with his life? Would he stay because it was easy? Things would not be the same. Would he travel alone and perhaps find peace or death? What did he want to do?

Never had he booked such a fear in the face as this. He could run away, or lie, or simply do nothing. But could he no nothing as Hyrule shattered? Such a beautiful land and people that would wither and die. The bandits would eventually kill them all or scatter them. He didn't dare imagine Zelda's fate in such a future.

"I might be no one special," he told his princess slowly. She felt a wave of nerves envelop her when he gave her such an intense look as he never had. Or perhaps he had, a long time ago. "I will help you save our people. It's my home. The home I choose. The people I love. I'll help you whether or not I like it."

Farore interrupted the overwhelming and joyous feeling in Zelda's mind. "So, then, Child of Courage. What does Courage mean to you?"

Link looked at her with utter confidence. "Courage isn't just facing fear. It's doing what your soul tells you is just and right, despite your fears, despite your surroundings," he paused to look at Zelda again, "and despite yourself."

Farore giggled with delight in the echoing wooden room. "Marvelous. I couldn't have said it better myself. Well, maybe I could have." She waved a hand at Zelda and the cut on the mortal's cheek sealed perfectly shut. "Sorry about that, by the way. I hate these challenges because I have to act like such a brute without provocation. It's so unfair. I dislike injustice."

"Th-thank you?" the princess stuttered, flabbergasted by Farore's sudden change in personality. She went from frighteningly sensitive and savagely polite to rather informal and kind.

"Patience is more my strong suit compared to Nayru. Was I convincing?"

"Very," Link muttered, a bit annoyed with how he was so fooled.

The goddess sighed. "Well, back to twiddling my thumbs for the next couple of centuries. Do have fun, kiddos."

With a blink, they were alone in the strange room. Zelda let go of all her anxieties that built up for the past thirty minutes and gazed up at the ceiling. The illusion of the night sky and soft warm lantern-like lights calmed her immensely. She barely noticed Link pad up quietly towards her to stand by her side and raise his head also.

"Are you alright?" he whispered.

She laughed a bit through her nose. "I should be asking you that." Her face turned towards his, eyes softly probing with the question. "Are you?"

He managed a content smile. "I will be."


	8. Chapter 8

Chaper VIII

Tsarien and Viven were gone. Zelda traced their few snow prints with her eyes, a stripe of panic across her brain and confusion stealing words from her mouth. Epona whinnied in distress and Link did his best to reassure the spooked beast. It didn't make any sense. They had just disappeared. No one had come to capture them, and they didn't run off either.

"What do we do?" Link asked Zelda, a tone of concern thick in his voice.

She glanced at him with a crazed look, the stress of the past few weeks and the past day becoming too much to handle. "I don't know! They could be anywhere. They could be—"

Link stared at her when she stopped herself. "Dead," he finished for her, the bitter reality sinking in. "Let's assume that they are not. Considering there are no tracks of bandit and all the supernatural things we've been involved in –"

"It's likely connected to the next temple," Zelda added, following his train of thought like it was her own. "It'll take us several days to get there. The twins could easily freeze or starve."

"Epona could sprint us part of the way," Link suggested, but Zelda shook her head.

"She'll tire under both our weight and the supplies," the princess stated sadly. "We'd have to abandon her partway there."

Link look away and leaned forward on the mare a bit, his breath ragged in frustration. Epona bent her head around to nip his cap, bobbing her head in comfort. In a sudden rush, Link began to untie bags of supplies, only keeping the bed mats and flint. Zelda stepped over to stop him, but he finished and mounted before she could get a decent grip against him.

The young hero held out his hand to her, a commanding and certain gaze showering down that gave her familiar chills. He was asking her to trust him, to follow his lead—it was so different from his previous attitude. He was no longer concerned about position or rank. His regard was just one friend to another. His feelings and motives were plain and simple: there were people to save. Get on the horse.

Now there is a warrior I can follow, Zelda thought, holding back a smile as she firmly grasped his hand and lifted herself up from the stirrup. The warmth from both the horse and his body was most welcome.

"Let's go, Epona," Link encouraged quietly, and Zelda tightened her core in anticipation of the horse bolting forward. It was exceedingly awkward to ride behind someone on a powerful mount such as Epona, but the efficiency of the speed was enough to be worth it.

"Northeast," Zelda exclaimed over the pounding of hooves in powdered snow.

"I know," Link returned, turning his head a bit to look at her.

"You never saw the scroll," Zelda said, pulling a quizzical face.

"Farore told me," he explained, "Er, she showed me, actually."

"Why?"

"I think we're about to find out," he said finitely, holding his left fist up. His Triforce was glowing already, and Zelda felt her own flicker a bit in recognition. It clicked in her brain. Farore must have given him a hint at what kind of ability he was given. Perhaps navigation or speed . . . her mind was boggled with possibilities.

Zelda's eyes caught something pale green fly past them in the wind. Was that a bird? Another small speck of peridot green fluttered past. It looked more like light. Two more. No, definitely birds. Four or five more; too fast to tell.

A pleasant twitter reached her ears from above, causing her to look up. A soft green gathering of light, glowing like a lantern and leaving smoking trails behind it, had taken the sharp form of a swallow. It battered its wings once, cried again, and Zelda caught herself staring up at it in wonderment. It reminded her of the lights in Farore's temple, but also of the green gemstones the goddess wore.

It dove a bit closer to them, making her flinch, then fluttered forward ahead with a strange playfulness. Once it was almost out of sight, it disappeared into mist for a heartbeat, leaving the princess confused and curious. Her questions were answered when the same green light exploded in front of Epona's thundering path, enveloping all three creatures and intoxicating all they could see, hear, and feel.

Zelda's heart almost stopped at the sensation. There was nothing underneath her or in her arms, but she could still see her companions with her. Was she losing her mind, or was this some strange enchantment?

The older teenagers tumbled violently into a cushioning layer of snow, their mount barely managing to keep on her feet as she trotted urgently ahead of them and circled back. Zelda lifted herself up with her hands, brushing snow off her face and dreading the bruises on her sides that she would surely receive. Her vision was gradually pulling itself back to reality, though her thoughts were still a bit scrambled. Capturing view of her bow a few feet away, she attempted to stand to collect it when a wave of vertigo buckled her knees back into the snow.

The warm breath of a concerned mare made her look up slightly and pat the beast's snout with a smile. "I'm alright, girl," the princess breathed, still a bit winded. Her surroundings were finally clicking into place in her sight. The structure in the close distance was bare and without landmarks, a pyramid of dark stone that was no bigger in dimensions than the last two temples. The distinct golden crest was visible even at such a way away.

"How . . . ?" Zelda wondered aloud, finding the strength to collect her bow and straighten out her leather armour. They were over a four days' journey from the Temple of Din, yet here it was. Farore's gift to Link must have bee speed—or maybe it was more than that. Instant transportation? A portal, or sorts."

She whipped her head around. Where _was_ Link?

Epona cantered off to her right to show the princess the blob of green fabric in the puffy ice crystals. A pang of panic crashed into her mind when she saw that he wasn't moving, and frantic muscles pushed her over to kneel at his side. He was face down in the snow, green cap lost a bit a few feet off, fully revealing the mop of dusty hair pulled back. Though he was a few inches taller than her and powerfully strong, his lean youthfulness made it not too difficult to turn him over and lift his torso up by the shoulders.

Zelda watched Link's calm, unconscious face as she almost cradled his body, pulling his nose and mouth up to her ear. He was breathing, and still very warm in her arms. She sighed in relief, sitting back a bit. His nose was bleeding quite a lot from the impact, so she tore some cloth from under her leather armour to stuff up his nostrils. Pinching and prodding the connection of cartilage and bone on the bridge gently, she concluded it was not broken.

Good thing, too, Zelda thought with a smirk. Lileh would be upset if it set wrong and ruined his good looks.

Epona sighed loudly beside them, and both females taking a peaceful moment to wind down from what just occurred. The princess closed her eyes, listening to their breathing happily as her heart returned to a normal rhythm. She hoped with all her being that the twins were safe, perhaps at or in the temple. They were so close to all of this being over. It was imperative that they finish this last task before the close by bandits discovered their trespassing.

Link stirred, drawing her shy eyes downward to look him in the face. He peeled his half-lidded gaze open to find her there, stooped over him and holding him close. Her silver-blonde hair fell around her startled and blank expression, the braid almost undone, a colour of concern on her cheeks. He did his best to smile at her despite being sore all over and barely keeping his mind straight. There was something so oddly familiar about how she was looking at him, and her comfortingly constant gaze told him that she was also curious about the sense of déjà vu.

"You really are quite beautiful," Link murmured, not entirely in control of his mouth.

She blinked, very startled and flustered at the random compliment, but he didn't regret saying it. "Eh?!" she squeaked, letting go of him so suddenly that he fell back into the snow. He laughed and sat up, shaking out his hair and placing his cap back on. He had never imagined such a noise would come from her.

Zelda was sure she had never heard Link laugh like that before. It was so carefree and innocent. She kneeled neatly, brushing back her hair with her fingertips and demanding that her cheeks not flare up as they were. She couldn't tell if his comment was genuine or if he was teasing her. She couldn't even understand why she cared at all what he thought. Approval from a friend is good, she supposed, but she would've expected reception on her knowledge or battling skills, not her appearance.

"Th-thank you," she managed, avoiding his gaze.

Link was suddenly concerned he made her truly uncomfortable. It was a very odd thing to escape his mouth, but it was all he could think of in that moment. "Sorry, I shouldn't have—"

"You're very handsome as well," she cut in, lifting herself up to stand and grab Epona's reigns. "Relatively speaking."

Link swallowed hard at her reply, also working up to his feet. He supposed it was just like her to return a kind gesture in that sort of way. He was curious what she meant by 'relatively', but decided not to press.

"Are you alright?" he asked her simply, drawing up to her side as they trekked towards the last temple.

She pointed to between his eyes. "I'm not the one bleeding."

Link gave her a questioning look before she reached out and withdrew the cloth she had given him to stop his nosebleed, dried mucus and blood coming with it. He tapped his nose lightly as she discarded it, caught completely unaware that he had that stuffed up his face. Zelda chucked slightly as he crunched up oddly, trying to get used to the cold air again.

"Thanks," he said with a smile.

"You're very welcome," she returned, her eyes focused ahead. "Farore said my ability is called 'Nayru's Love'. What did she say about yours?"

Link shrugged. "She didn't."

Zelda pondered for a moment, trying to think of what would match best. "Wind," she muttered.

"Hm?"

"Farore's Wind."

 _Hey dear readers,_

 _Life goes on. This was typed up quickly, so sorry for grammar errors. I'm tired. Finals will come eventually. I plan on writing more when I'm not a member of the undead. Thanks for your patience._

 _Here's my Tumblr (basically just eyesofenigma it's easy to find) if you're interested in regular miscellaneous artwork and updates on the novel I am self-publishing later this year. Thank you for any and all support._

 _Love and stuff,_

 _Eyes Of Enigma_


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter IX

Viven poured over a large apothecary and medicine text in a lavish, dust-and-parchment smelling private library. The warm hearth glowed lowly in the late evening, glimmering against the long and thin stained-glass window shielding her from a heavy but peaceful downpour across Hyrule's land. A luxurious cushioned seat hugged her cloaked form comfortingly, and all was right with the world as the knowledge from the text slowly distilled in her mind. It had been a few hard years since they restored their homeland, but after the capital was rebuilt to stability and the farmlands were finally replenished, everything was paying off. The castle was still a good decade from being completed, but the Royal house, court, and guard was fully functional out of a very large home in the center of the capital.

Zelda, of course, was crowned queen, made Link the chief of the Royal Guard, and after Lileh had passed on her skills to Viven, the young Druid was now the apprentice to the head of medicine. She was the queen's best friend; the person she confided in and asked for advice. Viven had dedicated herself to finding new ways of saving people. She was happy.

Light footsteps alerted Viven to the approaching slender and colourfully dressed royal, still always practical in her garb but commanding in spirit, and the teenager lifted from her seat to bow respectfully. Zelda smiled sweetly, a gesture that was rare in light of her serious nature and their emergence from difficult times.

"It's a slow day," Zelda commented, trailing her fingers along another chair as she slowed to stand a good speaking distance away from Viven. "Mostly small disputes and infrastructure decisions. How have you been keeping?"

"Me?" Viven asked, confused with the sudden concern. How was she? How did she feel? "I'm great, thank you for asking."

"Oh good," Zelda replied quickly. "How about we get some fresh air? We can take a stroll and chat. I feel like I've been too busy the last couple weeks to really catch up with you."

Viven spun around to face the window. "Isn't it—" She stopped and turned back halfway, fixing her eyes on nothing in particular as she seriously considered if she was going mad. It was a beautiful flame orange evening with a few puffy clouds. She could've sworn it was pouring rain not moments ago. Weather could be fickle, she supposed. A confused glance from Zelda was enough to make her resume her composure. "Sorry, don't mind me. Let's step outside."

There were hardly twenty paces along a cobble-stoned street along comely homes and gardens, halfway through a conversation, when Viven was already back into the lovely rhythm of life in Hyrule Town again. Everyone was friendly passing by, industrious, and returning to their homes for fragrant meals as the sun kissed the sky goodnight. The two young women remarked on the fair air, the plants in the gardens, which slowly gravitated to a discussion on herbs and berries for medicine, which Viven was naturally attracted to.

They trailed the edges of the defending wall when a familiar green-clad form skipped up behind to meet their path. Link had grown a bit more, even as Viven had also increased in height it was still noticeable, and his finer features were sharper with maturity. A dusty blond two-day-old scruff framed his chin and jaw, but it suited his generally slightly unkempt appearance and attitude. He glanced quickly at Viven with a cheerful nod, but then his full attention turned to Zelda as he performed a short and swift bow.

"Apologies. Zelda, could I have permission to ask the tanners for set of hides for the Guard? Saddles were above the expected leather budget." Link's informality of speech told Viven that nothing between the two friends had changed much. He was still the hero, and her the goddess Hylia made mortal. As she watched the two ancient souls exchange words, she smiled inwardly with the hope of a pleasant romance growing between them. Circumstances seemed to play in such a way, or so she fancied. It was destiny.

Zelda was firm. "Half a set. Economize; the tanners need to make a living. Especially with trade from the Gerudos coming up in a few weeks."

He bowed again, then his limber form jogged back to wherever he needed to be.

Viven and Zelda turned back onto their path. "He's become much more confident," the young Druid remarked, grinning slightly. "It's very becoming for him. He commands with humility and wisdom. I almost forgot about him once being a prisoner."

"Yes, it's comforting to imagine that if anything happened to me, Hyrule would still be in good hands," Zelda replied.

"It won't happen. The royal line would be gone if you were harmed."

"Fate is a fickle mistress. We must prepare for the worst without fearing it. Besides, blood means little when it's a person's ability that matters." A short silence filled with the scuff of relaxed footsteps as the conversation took a healthy pause. "So tell me, how is your personal life? No one that catches your eye?"

Viven blinked in surprise and then giggled. "Zelda, I didn't think you were interested in my love life. Unfortunately, I don't think that will happen for a while. There have been some . . . but I'd prefer to focus on my studies under Lileh and my training as a Druid under Impa. Besides, Tsarien would probably try to beat up whoever came calling for me."

"Beg your pardon?" Zelda inquired at the last part. "Is that a friend of yours?"

Viven halted in her tracks, brows lowering with concern and bewilderment. "Zelda . . . Tsarien. You know," she muttered.

The queen stopped a bit further up the street and turned to face her young friend. "Do I? I meet a lot of people, Viven. I probably don't remember it if you introduced me to your friend."

"Tsarien is my brother!" Viven almost exclaimed, the hot sensation of panic and frantic thought running through her ears and face. Was Zelda going mad? Was she going mad? "Tsarien is my twin brother . . ." Her eyes trailed away as her voice did, then her head snapped up. "I'm sorry, I have to go. Something I need to take care of."

Her feet fled back to where they came, and in a spray of loosed clothing, her fox form bounded into the approaching darkness. Something was wrong, something was wrong, something was wrong! Where was he? Where is my brother? I need him! He's the only one who understands. The only one who knows what it's like to be me. Where would he be? He must be part of the Guard, or with the Sheikahs!

The armoury and stables had no scent of him. None of the Sheikah's homes. Not one inch of the Royal House. Her paws found their way back to her small quarters slowly, weighted heavily with thought. She crawled unto the bed and under the covers to conceal her now chilled and bare human body. It didn't take long for Zelda to find her, carrying her undergarments and cloak in her arms.

The silvery-haired queen gracefully placed herself on the bed and spoke softly like a mother to an upset child. "Viven, what's wrong? Tell me what happened."

The young Druid was so confused, so jumbled, so overwhelmingly empty. She hardly noticed the hot tears running down her face and the tiny sobs escaping her mouth. "I don't know—I had a nightmare, I think—or maybe . . . maybe a memory? I can't recall. It's all so blurry."

Zelda raised her voice a bit, trying to be kind and firm. "Describe your dream to me."

Viven racked her brain. Everything was so cloudy outside of all this. All this noise. All this busy happiness and prosperity. Something was so wrong. "We—we were all traveling . . . like before. Before the bandits left. You and Link were in Farore's temple, and you told Epona and I to stay outside to keep watch. I was playing in the snow . . . making patterns, playing tick-tack-toe. Someone else was there. I had a brother! A twin . . . he looks just like me, but heavier freckles, a sharper face, a ponytail instead of a braid . . . where is he? I want my brother!"

"Shh," Zelda comforted, rubbing Viven's back against the sheets. "You've just overworked yourself. It was just a dream. Don't worry, you're safe. I'm here for you."

Viven sobbed one last time, then stilled. "You're right," she decided. "I just need rest."

"Good, I'll leave you be. Get some sleep."

Viven waited carefully for the footsteps to leave and the door close on a silent room. She breathed hotly under the sheets, her mind spinning. Everything was okay. Just sleep. Just sleep.

The rain drowned out all sharp sound, slowly lulling her to slumber with it's soft song.

Viven sat up violently, her bed covers flying off her naked body as she stared in horror out the window. It was absolutely pouring rain. I can't remember, she thought. I can't remember anything between then and now. How had they defeated the bandits? Who was the bearer of Din's Power? What did the Temple of Din look like? What did she look like at this age, at seventeen years old? Where was Tsarien?

The floor seemed to open up beneath her as epiphany dawned.

This isn't real.

 _(Muahaha._

 _Tumblr under eyesofenigma if you're interested.)_


	10. Chapter 10

_Sorry for the wait, but I'm finally finished exams, so I should be writing more regularly._

 _I have another fan fic in the works for a different fandom, and I have to knuckle down on all the work to pull my novel together for publication, so I anticipate that this little story won't be too many more chapters long._

 _This one's a wee bit short, but I was trying to pull a little bit of Freudian psychology with Tsarien's illusion. Hope you enjoy. Let me know what you think/if there are any typos._

 _Oh, and if you're interested, I have an art blog on Tumblr under eyesofenigma._

 _Love and stuff,_

 _Eyes Of Enigma_

Chapter X

Tsarien held the gaze of his own pale, freckled, and sharp-featured face as his hands expertly tightened down the last outer layer of dueling armour. It had been so many years of hard work and training before he became one of the best in the kingdom at combat. Impa had devoted most of her time on her young Druid apprentice after recognizing his talent, moulding him into a warrior worthy of a commanding rank. Hyrule never had such a young promise.

He was only second-best. It didn't matter that Link was older than him by four years. It didn't matter that he was the hero. Whatever that meant. This kingdom was well on its way to recovery in the last five years, so there really was no need for a "hero" anymore. He was just an image now. The charismatic pretty boy that everyone likes.

The young man roughly pulled his brunette ponytail tighter on his head at the thought. Today he would show everyone the emptiness in that hero title that they all so revered. Especially Zelda. She needed to know that her energy and time was being wasted. This new tournament would show everyone. It was the finals; he only had one shot. It would be simple. He wasn't a little kid anymore.

The rules of the competition didn't allow overly heavy armour. For the sake of entertainment, it was combat based more on evasion and base skill. The danger was the real weapons. Control was necessary in order not to injure one's opponent. Tsarien pulled up his rapier. It was a wonderfully balanced blade in his hand, and definitely not something he could handle five years ago.

The tent flaps opened the way for him to walk out confidently into the fenced ring and the wooden, stadium-like seats with cheering crowds. He glanced around happily at the approval as he took his position at the centre of the ring, but his smile faded at the sight of his combatant. Link had entered the fighting area only moments before him. They were cheering for that idiot in that stupid green cap. Tsarien would've snarled if he was in fox form.

Just forget about it, he told himself, gripping the rapier strongly. Just focus on the fight. Link lifted his left hand up to the long sword on his back and Tsarien felt his blood boil a second time. That was the Blade of Evil's Bane. They let him battle with that. He really had Zelda wrapped around his finger, didn't he?

The match was announced and the bell was rung. Immediately Tsarien teased their blades with a few quick strikes to get warmed up, and smirked at the look of slight unease on his opponent's face. Aw, is the hero rusty? Tsarien couldn't help but grin wider.

Fencing like this didn't usually last too long. It was easy to make a mistake within those precious and precise few seconds. The Druid inhaled sharply, making Link's ears prick up at the sound and tensing violently. The audience grew silent at the motions, but Tsarien didn't make any assault. His stare locked with Link's as they shared a silent understanding. As the cool air brushed against their warm and stressed bodies, two metallic faces sat opposed for perhaps far too long. Suddenly Tsarien could feel all the leather he was wearing—every small piece and rough edge. What if he couldn't make this work? Did he make one spot too tight, was his stance not right, was he holding his sword one hair out of place?

Was he not strong enough?

Three clashes of metal later proved him too later. A thin sheet of sharp steel was resting against the chest of his armour, his own blade deflected slightly to the side but still in his hand.

The crowd erupted in adoration for the victor, who withdrew and sheathed, leaving Tsarien to stand there in disbelief and wondering what happened.

"Well, good effort," Link told him with a smirk as he waved to the throng around him. "You are only thirteen."

Tsarien blinked and looked up at Link with vivid, confused green eyes. "What?"

Before the hero could respond, Tsarien's attention was directed right behind him by a small female voice.

"Tsarien, you need to wake up," she called.

He spun around, but the space there was empty. It was empty, sandy ground. "Where—?"

The next time she spoke, it was resounding in his head. "Tsarien. Please wake up."

"Viven?"


	11. Chapter 11

_Well, it's been a while. My life is . . . interesting, right now, but I will persevere and make strides to finish this little story of mine. Also, drop a comment if you catch which LoZ game I reference in this chapter (Hint: It's about a goddess, and it's from a sort-of-spinoff-but-still-in-the-timeline LoZ game). Sorry if there are typos; I was trying to work fairly quickly to get this out for you guys. Thanks for reading!_

Chapter XI

Zelda stood transfixed at the mouth of a dark triangular entrance. The solid dark marble of the temple radiated a suffocating heat, defining the contrast of the cold late-winter air against her back. She disliked patronizing hospitality. There was something about such welcoming behaviour as a wide-open door that made her skeptical. The Temple of Power was just sitting there and waiting for them.

Two pairs of blue eyes stared down the pitch-black tunnel with a nervous intensity. Zelda subconsciously tightened the shoulder strap holding her leather armour together as the nerves on the back of her neck bristled. Link was so close she could feel his uneasy breath against her skin. If Viven and Tsarien were anywhere, they were definitely here.

"So?" Link prompted, his voice low and somewhat controlled. It was a slight comfort to her that he was attempting to be strong on her behalf.

The princess resumed her commanding façade and clutched her bow to the at-the-ready position, her fingers skimming the edge of the quiver on her waist. "So, we go in."

Only a few steps in and she was stopped by his firm grasp on her arm. He had a strange look, but it was one she was familiar with. A mixture of concern and seriousness. A startling honesty.

"I will not stop you from anything you put your mind to," he told her firmly.

She couldn't help but smirk. "I can't imagine you'd be able to," she replied.

That seemed to cause a pleasant smile from him for a moment, bringing out his softer, more handsome features. "I mean it. I'll never try to get in your way unless I really thought you were misguided."

Zelda gently wiggled out of Link's hold to place her own fingers around his wrist. "That's what I like most; when someone treats me like a normal person."

Link nodded slightly once. "I'm glad you're doing the same for me."

Zelda's chest tightened with compassion. All the sudden, it was like he was that boy in the creek, bruised and beaten, his strong gaze of fear holding hers. "Let's go find them."

Boot scuffs were the only things that led Link behind Zelda in the uneasy darkness. The air was unbearably stagnant and humid, the temperature causing a slight sweat against his undershirt already. He had no idea how Zelda knew where she was going, but he guessed that the skimming sound he finally heard was her hand against the wall.

About twenty paces in, a deafening groan vibrated down the tunnel followed by the thud of heavy stone. The entrance had shut, cutting them off from any light, fresh air, and option of retreat. There was no going back. Link could've sworn he and Zelda had looked at each other for comfort, but it was impossible to tell. They could only go forward.

Breathing became heavy with both the heat and slight panic. After some time treading carefully, Link placed his hand on the wall in the same way as Zelda, perhaps more for balance than for guidance. Suddenly she halted, almost causing a collision between them.

"What's wrong?" Link asked quickly, the thick air making it difficult to form words.

"It's gone. There's a corner here. I think we're in a bigger room."

"Probably the centre of the temple like the last two," Link replied.

"But how big is it?" she asked, waving her hands out in front of her as she continued forward.

"Hey!" Link shouted out, startling her. His call returned to them after a small delay, and then again after another wait. "Pretty big," he said nonchalantly.

"Warn me next time you're going to make me jump out of my skin!" she huffed.

"Zelda?" a small voice called. "Link? Where are you? I can't see you."

The princess gasped. "Tsarien? Thank the goddesses, you're alright! Follow the sound of my voice."

Viven's voice came next. "You can't even tell the difference between our voices? I'm Tsarien."

"What? Of course I know the difference between your voices," Zelda exclaimed, flabbergasted. "This is no time for your games, Tsarien."

"Why do you always assume he's the one who comes up with pranks? I'm just as clever!" came the distinctly boyish tone.

"Alright, everyone, stop talking," Link announced forcefully, and everyone present obeyed. After a brief pause, he spoke slowly and clearly again. "Tsarien. Reach behind your head and tell me how your hair is."

"It's in a ponytail, everyone knows that," a young female voice snapped.

"Just do it," Link retorted.

A pause and the rustle of fabric hold suspense for a few moments as Zelda considered what was going on. It could've been an illusion, or they may have changed voices. A cruel joke if the temple was playing one.

"It's . . . a braid. Viven! Did you do this while I was sleeping again?"

Tsarien scoffed. "Only if you put my hair in a ponytail while I was."

"Why would I—"

"Shut up, both of you!" Link growled, ending the volley with revering silence. That was the first time they had ever seen him so frustrated, but Zelda simply stayed quiet and out of his way, curious of the direction these events would take. He stared at nothing in particular, but around the area of their voices. "Haven't you figured it out yet? The temple has switched your minds with your bodies."

At the moment he said it, the edges of the temple's main room ignited in warm red flame, illuminating the space with a crimson tint. Tsarien, or at least, his body, was spaced out next to Viven's form in such a way that all four of them were placed in a small square at the centre of the room. A medallion with one third of the Triforce installed was paved into the stone floor between them, the one gold triangle at the top glistening in the flickering light.

By reflex, Zelda reached for her arrows and Link for the sword at his back, but Tsarien and Viven simply turned their heads to look.

"How did we end up here?"

"We were with Epona just a moment ago."

"Had a weird dream, though."

"Me too! What was yours?"

Tsarien, in the voice and body of Viven, glanced nervously at Link and then at Zelda, shaking his head. "Doesn't matter."

"It does too!" Viven exclaimed in her brother's tone. "You always tell me, so why is this any different?"

Zelda laughed with unease at their frivolous conversation. "How can you two be so calm? You've in each other's bodies."

A deep, mature, female chuckle resounded throughout the room. It was playful and flirtatious, but also mocking. "That would be because they can barely tell the difference between each other themselves."

The Triforce medallion briefly erupted a tall flash of flame, and in its place stood a long, lithe young woman garbed in red. Her clothing reminded Zelda of the illustrations of the Gerudo women in her history books. It seemed a bit immodest for her taste, but she could not deny that it would be advantageous to flaunt such a comely figure. The woman tossed back her long, curly fiery hair, her gold eyes half-lidded and spiced with a sly smile.

Zelda bowed politely, perfectly understanding what was about to happen. Link followed her example as she spoke. "Goddess Din, apologies for the disturbance."

The woman in red giggled again. "Don't worry, love. I knew you were coming. That's why I brought them here." Her gaze slid to the twins.

"And subsequently switched their bodies?" Link asked, being careful not to sound too accusatory.

She popped her hip out and placed a hand there. "Yes, you were quick to figure that one. Brawn, beauty, and brains, it seems. Just like our young princess over there."

Zelda was appalled to see Link flush from such a compliment given by an attractive disguise. She supposed she wouldn't be any better in his place, and revised her opinion quickly. "Why have you done this?" she asked the goddess.

Din sighed. "Isn't it obvious? They need help. I decided I would assist."

"We can tell the difference between each other, by the way!" Tsarien hissed through Viven.

"Oh really?" Din asked, pacing over to the small boy in his sister's form, leaning over to look him in the face. "Both of you can only truly be yourselves when you forget the other exists. When you finally remember, all you can do is despair without one another. What do you think that says about it?"

Tsarien opened his mouth to protest, then shut it again. Din smirked and stood straight again, swaying her hips as she sauntered. "As I suspected. A boy who only wants to be the best fighter in Hyrule, and a girl whose sole desire is to be a respected herbalist. Both want their skills recognized by their beloved princess. Such strong wills and minds. If only they weren't holding each other back."

"We have not been holding each other back!" Tsarien cried out feverishly. "Right, Viven?"

The girl shifted uncomfortably in her brother's body. There was a very awkward pause as she avoided her own eyes. Zelda watch very closely, capturing every confused and offended expression exchanged between the siblings. Link's attention was on Din, who was looking very pleased with the mess she had created.

"Tsarien," Viven started meekly. "Whenever I try to ask Lileh for an apprenticeship you always talk me out of it."

"I'm just sayin' that Lileh will probably say no and I don't want you to get all depressed over it," Tsarien replied, somewhat uneasy.

"How do you know she wouldn't just love to teach me?" Viven cried, her voice stretching the upper limits of the male larynx. "The only thing you're concerned about is if you get annoyed by my distress."

Tsarien clicked his tongue. "You get all mopey and you never want to do anything."

"Including helping you train so you can ask Impa to train you?" Viven retorted.

"You should join me! We make such a good team."

"Only because I'm better at Druid magic."

"Well you're certainly not the stronger of the two of us! A team needs balance."

As the bickering continued and escalated in both volume, intensity, and speed, Zelda and Link viewed the feud from afar, Din joining the spectating with amusement. The young man leaned forward to hiss a whisper toward his equally silent friend.

"Do we just . . . let this happen?" he asked.

Zelda shrugged. "I think this is healthy."

Din turned her head over her shoulder to smile at the two of them. "It is, but only if they resolve it."

"How?" Link inquired.

Zelda sighed. "It's a family thing. Difficult to describe."

"You don't have any brothers or sisters," Link pointed out.

"True," the princess admitted, "But family can expand beyond blood."

"You've always exploited my abilities just because you're always trying to impress Zelda!" Viven accused her brother. "It's always 'I have to prove to her I deserve more, that I can protect her'."

Tsarien took a panicked side-ways glance at Zelda and blushed wildly. "Y-you're one to talk! All you've ever wanted is to be her best friend and her confident!"

The sister twin also turned a bit red, bit continued her verbal barrage. "Well, neither of us will get what we want since he's around!" An offensive and direct finger truck out in the direction of Link.

The young man bore a brief 'who, me?' expression before Din interjected. "Leave the two of them out of this. Don't blame your problems on other people." She crossed her arms and sighed. "This is worse than I thought. For being supposedly inseparable twins, you seem like you could spend some time apart."

"Gladly!" they both chimed together, shooting aggressive glances.

Din chuckled again, her musical laughter carrying into her words. "Remember what happened when I put you on your own. You were content for a while, until you recalled your true selves. You two can't even function without each other. Or at least, that's what you think."

Tsarien gave the goddess an innocently quizzical face. "What are you saying?"

Din frowned a bit with seriousness. "Tsarien, if I were to leave you in your sister's body for the rest of your lives, what would you do?"

The boy's nose flared and eyes opened wide at the horror of the idea at first, then relaxed slightly as he considered it. His voice became a bit somber. "Well . . . I wouldn't like it but . . . I suppose I would live out her life for her. Men can't study medicine under a female Sheikah mentor, so I'd have to do it."

Din blinked, seeming a bit disappointed. "And you, Viven?" she asked, her head turned to the other Druid.

Viven shifted her steps a bit. "Tsarien always wanted to be a prominent soldier, even part of the private guard. Wouldn't hurt to pursue such a career."

The goddess of Power clicked her tongue. "Tsarien, why do you want to be a fighter?"

"Well . . . to protect people," he replied.

"What's the real reason?" Din challenged. "You're old enough to know why you do things. Think about the illusion I built around you."

He opened his mouth to spit another thoughtless reply out, but stopped himself in his tracks to think critically. "I want to be a fighter because I'm good at it—It makes me feel good. Like I can make a difference; I can control my surroundings, command respect, and have strength."

"You think too much with your muscles instead of your brain," Viven hissed quietly.

Din was quick to pick up on it, an almost motherly look of discipline in her eyes as she nearly scowled at the young Druid. "And you, young lady? Why is it you want to become a herbalist?"

"Because I—" Viven rushed, also ceasing to give her mind the chance to catch up with the truthful question. "I want a purpose. For people to say 'thank you' when I do something. To help people heal, and for them to appreciate me for it. Healing, and Druid magic, makes me feel like I'm good at something, that I'm smart and special and—"

"And strong?" Din finished for her, anticipating the end of Viven's phrase. The girl simply nodded. "You both want similar things, just as I said before. You direct it at Zelda, but that's only because she represents the opinion of all your peers. Your entire community. The place you don't quite belong in. You think that achieving power in your own ways will give you comfort."

"What does this have to do with switching our bodies?" Tsarien inquired, his tone calm, but forced.

Din smirked again. "Everything, I'm afraid. Sibling rivalry is an interesting thing, really. It can be obvious, and other times, entirely silent. You two are so focused on this unified idea of claiming acceptance and control that you've forgotten to define yourselves as individuals."

"But we want to do completely different things!" Viven protested.

"Precisely!" Din cried. "Your individuality is there, you just won't allow it to grow. You're both too busy arguing over which path is best, clinging to the only stability and assurance you've ever know by limiting yourselves with petty feuds."

"What assurance?" Tsarien demanded.

Din uncrossed her arms and placed her hands on her hips again. "Each other's company," she returned somewhat sadly. "Too afraid to spread your wings from fear of separating. Tsarien, there is nothing holding you back from becoming a fighter in your sister's body; she is just as strong as you. Viven, you don't need to be female to learn the art and science of medicine."

"Are you telling us to split ways and go out on out own?" Viven whimpered, becoming a bit emotional over this realization.

Din shook her head, her long red curls flowing and bouncing. "No, child. I'm not saying that. I'm telling you that you should not be afraid to be your own people. Not to grow apart, but to grow together. You are stronger together, you have power together, but you can't be a pair until you are fully one of yourselves."

A silence distilled as the two siblings regarded each other with awkward smiles. They spoke the other's name at nearly the same time, and with their bodies and voices reversed, Zelda felt almost a bit dizzy with the confusion as she watched patiently. She had always suspected that there was something not quite right with them, despite their close kinship. Tsarien and Viven were the only ones they had in the world, and she suddenly felt very guilty that she hadn't done more over the years. Zelda shook the thought off. This wasn't about her. It was about them.

"Viven," Tsarien began uneasily, "I want you to ask Lileh to train you. There's no way she'd say no."

"Tsarien, you should ask Impa to train you. There's no way she'd say no," Viven replied, her smile growing wider. "You're strong and talented on your own. You don't need me around to prove everyone of that."

"Same goes for you. You've always been so smart and precise with everything, especially Druid magic."

"I won't stand in your way."

"I won't stand idle, either," Tsarien continued, already aware of his sister's thoughts. They stepped closer until only inches apart.

"I won't hurt you."

"I'll help you where I can."

"I won't be the same as you."

"I won't leave you all alone."

"We are strong by ourselves, aren't we? We'll show them how powerful we are."

The twins' gazes and similar features mirrored each other, but both were burning with their own harmonious light. Din seemed pleased, but Zelda and Link could only watch in awe.

"I know I can be selfish sometimes," Tsarien admitted, tears welling in his eyes.

"And I know I can be emotional," Viven added, laughing at herself slightly as she wiped moisture off her face with the back of her hand.

"But I'll never let my sister go," Tsarien pushed out, his voice twisted with confined grief, pulling her not-so-gently into a firm hug. "I'm sorry."

Viven clutched him tight, wondering when the last time they had embraced was. "I'm sorry, too." Her mind suddenly felt fluffy, perhaps with the emotion, and her words match her brother's in unison once more, nervous happiness curving their lips:

"I suppose Lileh told us that this is what love means, huh?"

Zelda froze to the spot at the sight of the two young Druids that had such an understanding of each other. She couldn't help but feel very jealous of their connection, but just as she turned her face away with somber reflection, a set of rough, calloused fingers laced with hers. Her startled blue eyes glanced up, but Link didn't meet her line of sight. He was watching carefully as Din's magic danced around their friends, returning them to their rightful bodies. He had grabbed her hand subconsciously, it seemed, but she intentionally did not let go. They were not so different in terms of loneliness. She ventured the possibility that they could fix such a thing together. In each other. Grow along side one another. But that was a thought to consider at a different time.

When Tsarien and Viven finally put a small bit of space between them, they were delighted to find themselves in the correct earthly vessel. This, of course, caused another joyous hug between them, leaving Zelda and Link to remember why they were in a goddess' temple in the first place.

"Din," Zelda asked, calling the beautiful form's attention towards her. "The heirloom predicted that the bearer of power would be in the temple already."

"Oh right," Tsarien agreed.

"We should be polite and say hello first," Viven added smartly.

Din threw back her head gracefully with a delighted laugh, then shot her striking eyes back to the princess with a cheeky smile. "There wasn't anyone in here besides me when you arrived?"

Zelda's lips parted slightly as it sunk in. Her head snapped towards the twins, then back at the goddess again. "You . . . mean to tell me . . . ?"

Viven grabbed Tsarien's arm in pure astonishment, her eyes refusing to move from Din's mischievous face. It was clear that they were both trying to find the words, but instead simply flapped their chins a bit in confusion.

"Can I just say I kind of saw that coming?" Link slipped in quickly.

"Unflappable, as usual," Zelda sighed, trying her best to process exactly what this meant. "Okay, so, yes or no: Tsarien and Viven are the bearers of the Triforce of Power . . . together?"

The goddess gave a sweet smile. "Yes, of course."


End file.
